I am sometimes asked what I mean by terms such as Forest-capoeira, Protocapoeira, Physical-game, Knife-proof game, etc. The article below is the only way I can explain it properly.
The history of capoeira is loaded.
It is loaded because there are many (influential) people who would like capoeira history to match their own agendas.
For example, there are people who would like capoeira to have come from Africa. (It did not).
There are people who would like the old capoeira to look like modern Angola (It did not).
There are people who would like the old capoeira to look like modern 'Regional', with high kicks and flips. (It did not).
Etc.
Therefore, if I publish what I believe to be the true history of capoeira, I am bound to piss off almost anybody.
Still, I am going to do it.
This is my current understanding of capoeira history, based mostly on the internal evidence of the techniques themselves.
The time periods are of course only rough estimates; so you kind of know where to place each type of capoeira in the timeline.
Capoeira was created in Quilombos of 17-18th century; where the runaway slaves fought guerrila warfare against the slave captors.
It looked precisely as how you would fight if you had to fight a guerilla warfare against a (numerically) stronger opponent in a forest (remember what I say in one of my articles: Context/Situation is everything).
There was no ginga (what would you need ginga in a guerilla warfare for?), no kicks, no game.
There was just Forest-walk, a way to move through the forest silently; and several ways to ambush the opponent using the environment - the forest (from behind the trees, bushes, from the branches etc).
All the ambushes were done using headbutts, which is very natural. This is where capoeira got its signature headbutts.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GTA5YSsRCU
So to repeat: The first capoeira was a way to walk silently through the forest and ambush the opponent with headbutts.
That was it.
(Note that of course there was no music in this capoeira - you wanted to ambush people, not to play them nice music.)
I believe this is where capoeira got its name 'capoeira' - it means, roughly 'a way to walk silently in the woods and ambush people'.
It only makes sense in this phase (Forest-capoeira); it does not make sense for any of the later phases of capoeira history, when capoeira moved out of the forest.
Thus:
-original capoeira did not come from Africa
-original capoeira did not have ginga
-original capoeira did not have kicks
-original capoeira did not have music
-original capoeira was not a game, it was a forest-ambush system
Still, this was THE capoeira; capoeira that gave capoeira its name. (Keep it in mind next time somebody tries to force onto you what in his mind is and is not allowed to be capoeira - "Without music, there is no capoeira!" - yeah right!)
Note:
For people who believe capoeira in this phase had ginga and kicks - if you had to face a soldier armed with a rifle and a sabre, would you ginga in front of him and throw helicopter kicks? Really?
Or would you rather creep to him and the ambush him from behind a tree with a sudden headbutt?
When capoeira moved out of Quilombos and into more urban areas, it changed. Outside of a forest, in urban areas, you usually do not need to ambush people from behind a tree. Rather, you usually need to fight one opponent face-to-face.
So capoeira had been reworked into a civilian self-defence system.
The Forest-walk was adapted into Eagle-ginga - they have the same mechanic archetype. And this is the first ginga capoeira had. The first capoeira ginga was created out of they way you walk silently in the woods. For now on, every type of capoeira will have a type of ginga.
So proto-capoeira got a brand new ginga; but still, you threw the same old forest-ambush cabeçadas from it; so Proto-capoeira was new Eagle-ginga plus cabeçadas from old Forest-capoeira.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMWokb_qZtE
But because when fighting opponent face-to-face (not ambushing him from behind a tree), you need to counter his punches too; Proto-capoeira got proto-rasteiras in this phase. These were the first rasteiras capoeira got - standing ones (because you did not use them to counter kicks, but mostly punches).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FkD49ZBW80
The addition of Eagle ginga and face-to-face fighting allowed, for the first time, sparring with capoeira.
(Note the high guard with closed fists, the cabeçada; and Proto-rasteira in the back.)
This sparring is what is described by Rugendas in 1820s as 'capoeira or war dance' - namely, headbutts, defended by jumps to the side and "sudden stops".
Note that there were still no kicks in capoeira in this phase, no acrobatics, no upside-down zebra kicks, no crawling on the ground - these simply cannot be done from Eagle ginga; and Rugendas also does not note any of these. And besides - what for?
Proto-capoeira was basically just Eagle ginga, cabeçadas and standing footsweeps(proto-rasteiras).
Also, note the closed fists. Protocapoeira keeps your fists closed, as we demonstrate in our videos - unlike all other capoeira systems after it.
Note: Just this alone would make furious people who would like the old "slaves' capoeira" to look like modern angola - standing on your hands and crawling on the floor, throwing Meia lua de compassos. But there is no description of old capoeira looking like that; on the contrary, there are descriptions of it looking like I describe above. And the techniques themselves support this.
Capoeira did not even have kicks at this point! That will come later.
Eagle ginga is very hard to crack. But around 1820s, somebody discovered a way to crack it: RubberLegs kicks.
Thus as I often say, the only true capoeiragem kicks are RubberLegs kicks; if there were only normal and LightLegs kicks, capoeira would still be Proto-capoeira.
Non-RubberLegs kicks are useless against Eagle ginga.
But with RubberLegs kicks, suddenly, you could get kicked even in Eagle ginga.
Good fighters hate to lose; so they had to change from Proto-capoeira to a new ginga - Monkey+Seduction1 ginga - and RubberLegs kicks. Proto-capoeira went out of fashion.
It also meant capoeira moved from being a civilian self-defence system to being a duelling system.
Unlike Forest-capoeira and Proto-capoeira, it was not used to fight against a layman; but to fight against another skilled capoeira fighter who knew RubberLegs kicks.
(Against a person who does not know RubberLegs kicks, Proto-capoeira is still the best).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KyWj2Z9m60
This is when capoeira first got its fearsome kicks - RubberLegs kicks!
(Note the open hands - that is Monkey+Seduction1 ginga. Also, note the Spider-hands entry done with the hat.)
Together with RubberLegs kicks, you needed a system of evasions to evade them - here, capoeira first got low evasions: (LightSkills) Cocorinha and (Nemer) Negativa.
And because, as I wrote, Original-capoeira was at its heart duelling, you needed a way to counter the kicks (Low Bahian Rasteira, Negativa pulldown) and a way to evade the rasteira done to counter your kick (Au) - which is something you would not need if you fought a layman.
Here, (Bahian) capoeira got it signature challenge - you give RubberLegs/LightLegs kick; opponent evades and gives low rasteira; you escape the rasteira with Au.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DT4-6uiYKRw&t=127s
(Note that in the video, it is thrown from Physical-game ginga, not from Monkey+Seduction1 gigna).
So in this phase, you more-or-less have the core of what is known today as Bahian capoeira - Monkey+Seduction1 ginga, RubberLegs kicks (Mldf, Armada, etc), Cocorinha, Negativa, Low Bahian Rasteira, Au.
It is what comprises the majority of Bimba's sequences; and what is also the basic challenge of Bahian capoeira game (kick, evade and rasteira, escape with Au).
And some cabeçadas, of course; but there is not as much emphasis on them; as they have to share the spotlight with RubberLegs kicks.
As I write above, Original-capoeira was a duelling system - one skilled fighter fighting another skilled fighter; not primarily a self-defense or a combat-game.
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Note also that Au was not put into capoeira 'to have fun being upside down'; it was an indispensable movement for escaping rasteiras in the duels. In a capoeira duel, nobody in his right mind would stand on his hands 'just for the hell of it'. Unfortunatelly, today, capoeiristas use Au for all other purposes other than escaping rasteiras (which they are unable to do). So characteristically, modern capoeira has it all backwards.
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Note that some authors cite sources that say capoeira was 'played' and used drums at this time; to implicate it was a game. But sparring and duelling, can be also 'played'; and to the sound of drums too. There is no reason sparring cannot be enjoyable or a game! But, it is still sparring; the real game-capoeira was created only in Bahia around 1850.
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I call this phase of capoeira evolution 'Original-capoeira'; this is not strictly speaking accurate (original capoeira was the Forest-capoera); but because most people imagine capoeira having kicks, this is the first system they would consider 'capoeira'. It is also the source from which all the later capoeiragem systems sprung out, and the one that sort-of survived into 21th century (in Bimba's sequences); so it has some right to be called 'Original-capoeira'.
Around 1850, Original-capoeira moved from urban areas to even more urban areas - to big cities, especially Rio, Sao Salvador and Recife.
There, it found another push that made it evolve. But in fact, they were two different impulses:
Mass battles/gangs of Rio and Recife
In Rio and Recife, it was the gangs and mass battles inside the city.
Suddenly, it was not enough to duel against one opponent; now you had to fight with many opponents at once and move around the battlefield. Ginga was not enough to cut it.
This made Monkey+Seduction1 ginga of Original-capoeira be adapted to Peneiraçao(link) in Rio; and to Combat-passo(link) in Recife; giving rise to Capoeiragem Carioca and Recifeana(link), respectively.
(For Capoeira Carioca, see my whole site).
These new types of ginga naturally disabled some(or most) of the Original-capoeira kicks; which made these new battlefield systems rely on headbutts, slaps and takedowns.
(Read Burlamaqui's book and count the kicks. Then count the takedowns).
(Note the Peneiraçao and Cabeçada solta)
These new battlefield styles even got combined with Batuque takedowns, which were probably created in this era too(see below).
Capoeira of Rio and Recife was pure fighting - but that is nothing extraordinary, as the capoeiras before it were also pure combat arts. It was in Bahia where capoeira became a game.
Combat games of Bahia
In Bahia, a different thing happened. It was probably the atmosphere of the city of Salvador that made people realize Original-capoeira(duelling) can be converted into a game.
So in Bahia, Original-capoeira got converted into several combat games:
1) Batuque (the leg-wrestling game) - based on leg-sweeps (link)
2) Physical-game capoeira - based on physical skills (RubberLegs and others) (link)
3) Contactless-game capoeira - based on contactless skills
4) Knifeproof-game capoeira - played with knives, using the skills of not being cut!
Each game had its own ginga, which dictated what techniques you could use. Comparison of their gingas and basic evasions:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUcVOT8ixqA
Note that Bahian games (minus Batuque) retained the greatest resemblance to the Original-capoeira; using kicks such as Armada and Mldf etc, countering them with Low Bahian rasteira.
What had been added were many 'challenges', elaborate ways you could challenge opponent's capoeiragem skills. Which skills depended on the type of game - the crazy baloes of Physical-game, shamanistic gestures("chamadas") of Contactless-game, or even handling the knife in Knife-proof game.
It was only at this point when music and singing was added to capoeira - more precisely, to the Bahian combat-games. Before that, there might be some drumming to enliven the sparring - but this is something entirely different from music and singing as an integral part of the game, the signature of Bahian Combat games.
It is also probable that berimbau got associated with (Bahian) capoeira only in this phase.
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This phase(1850-1900) was the golden age of capoeiragem; the pinnacle of its development; with battlefield systems and combat games that pushed the limits of human body to the maximum.
There very probably also was an interchange of techniques between Batuque, Carioca and even other capoeiragem systems; limited by the tactical schemes(gingas) of the respective systems.
Also note how far we got from the oldest Forest-capoeira; as far as the imaginary distance between the forest and the Brazilian capital.
Excursus - Zebra wrestling
Note that up to this phase, Zebra wrestling had nothing to do with capoeira. That is because neither Eagle-ginga of Proto-capoeira, nor Monkey+Seduction1 ginga of Original-capoeira can be integrated with Zebra kicks.
It was in this phase the new capoeiragem systems borrowed some Pantanas from Zebra wrestling.
Note that the integration of Zebra kicks into capoeira came relative late. Certainly, there was no 'Ngolo' at the root of capoeira.
Excursus - Native influence
It seems likely that in the phase, the combat techniques of Brazilian Natives(Indians) were also mixed with capoeira, both in Rio and Bahia.
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Excursus - further development
The four types of Bahian games influenced the later capoeira in a significant way:
-Batuque (later gave rise to the various 'pernadas' and leg wrestling games, now dead; besides influencing most of the new capoeiragem styles; and also being adapted to Tiririca2 Paulista)
-Physical-game capoeira (later gave rise to Regional of Mestre Bimba)
-Contactless-game capoeira (later gave rise to the 'angolas' of Querido de Deus, Mestre Valdemar and co., now apparently dead)
-Knifeproof-game capoeira (later gave rise to 'Angola' of Mestre Pastinha)
Note that this also gives an interesting answer to the age-old question: "Who was better capoeirista, Mestre Bimba, Querido de Deus or Mestre Pastinha?"
The answer is, it is impossible to determine; because each of them played a different type of capoeira, so they could not play together even if they wanted to! You simply cannot play Physical-game capoeira against Contactless-game capoeira; or even Knife-proof capoeira (that is only properly played knife against a knife).
So not only it is not true what various capoeira-philosophers say - that 'there is just one capoeira'; but even in Bahia in the golden age, there were so many capoeira styles that various capoeirista could not freakin' play with each other (if they kept to their styles)!
See also the following half-conclusion.
This is a rough diagram of the main currents in capoeira history
Note that this history up to 1900s finally explains the otherwise paradoxical counter-currents that can be felt inside capoeira:
-it favors ambushes (this is the feel of Forest-capoeira)
-it is a civilian self-defence (this is the feel of Proto-capoeira)
-it is a duel between two capoeiristas (this is the feel of Original-capoeira)
-it is a mass street fight (this is the feel of Carioca/Recifeana)
-it is a game with music and acrobatics (this is the feel of Bahian Combat games)
-it has baloes (this is the feel of Bahian Physical-game)
-it has 'shamanism' (this is the feel of Bahian Contactless-game)
-it has upside-down kicks (this is the feel of Zebra wrestling)
-it can even be played with knives (this is the feel of Bahian Knife-proof game)
Note that capoeira was all these; but never at the same time! Trying to blend it all together results in diarhea.
Therefore, my advice would be not to listen to 'capoeira philosophers' like Mestre Pastinha or Nestor Capoeira. In their mind, capoeira is 'everything at once' - and hence, nothing at all.
In my understanding, these are bad philosophers. Reading their thoughts is like reading a book about architecture that tries to blend all architectural styles together.
But renaissance, gothic, roman, baroque and rococo styles were never used together. People of different epochs used one style at a time.
Similarly, the different systems of capoeira - with various goals - were not used all at once. For the capoeira of 19th century Rio, capoeiragem was not 'everything that the mouth ate'. It was a combat system to fight in mass battles. That was it, plain and simple.
And as I wrote before, even Bahian games from the same age were so different they could not be played together!
I hope you start to understand that capoeira-philosophers like Mestre Pastinha or Nestor Capoeira only sell you confusion. Unfortunatelly, it seems that for some people, confusion is chic; but certainly not for me.
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Note also that capoeira as a game - combat-game, to be precise - accompanied by music and singing was only a part of what was capoeira during its history. Which, again, is something people today do not like to hear.