Meia lua de compasso
A powerful capoeira kick combining evasion and a reverse heel strike.
Rabo de arraia, also called meia-lua de compasso, is a capoeira and engolo technique that combines an evasive maneuver with a reverse kick. It is considered one of the most powerful kicks in capoeira, alongside the rasteira, and a capoeirista's general skill level can be judged by how hard and fast they execute it. The kick is performed with the heel and is extensively used in the low game.
Quick Facts
- Meaning
- compass crescent
- Also known as
- Rabo de arraia
- Parent technique
- engolo okuminunina kick, rabo de arraia
- Escapes
- esquiva, negativa
Facts from the source article.
Origin
Meia-lua de compasso, like many trademark capoeira movements, was developed within the Angolan martial art engolo. The inverted positions of engolo and capoeira, including the handstand, aú, and rabo de arraia, are believed to have originated from Bantu shamans imitating their ancestors, who walked on their hands in the spirit world. One myth holds that African slaves created capoeira while chained, leading to spinning attacks with hands on the ground.
History
In the 19th century, rabo de arraia was a popular kick in Rio's capoeira carioca, and contemporary illustrations show French savate fighters using the same strike. In 1909, capoeirista Francisco da Silva Ciríaco defeated Japanese jujitsu champion Sada Miyako with a rabo de arraia, though Anibal Burlamaqui noted it was a scorpion version, not a meia lua de compasso. The kick entered mixed martial arts in 2009 when Marcus Aurélio knocked out Keegan Marshall, followed by Cairo Rocha in 2011. In 2017, Ollie Flint knocked out Aaron Grey, but the result was changed to no contest.
Technique
Rabo de arraia can be executed from the ginga or from the ground negativa position, with the head and torso swinging down to generate momentum. Before kicking, the hands are placed on the floor and the target is looked at through them. The kick is a whip-like rotation: the kicking leg is thrown in a wide arc with the heel pointed at the target, passing through and ending on the ground at the starting point. The kicking leg should be straight, while the support leg may bend; the body rotates around the supporting leg, lifting one arm and leg off the ground. After the kick, the player returns to ginga. The kick generally aims at the head, with contact from the lateral foot or heel, but can target the face, chest, ribs, or belly. It is highly adaptable, spinning from various angles with rapid direction changes. Power derives from centripetal force similar to a golf club swing.
Variations
Meia-lua presa is performed with one hand on the floor and the other protecting the face. Meia-lua solta is the hands-free version, with hands kept close to protect the face; some authors call it chibata due to its whipping motion. A faster but riskier variation involves throwing the leg back and turning the body to hit with the heel, lacking a supporting arm. Meia-lua de compasso com queda de rins combines the kick with a queda de rins, transitioning into that position at contact, sometimes completed into resistençia. Meia-lua reversão begins as a compass crescent but ends like a front walkover, landing on the kicking leg and rotating 180 degrees. Meia-lua de compasso dupla is performed without either leg on the ground, using only hands for support, requiring high balance and strength. Meia-lua pulada, common in Rio de Janeiro, starts with a hand-spin motion and strikes with the heel.
More in Kicks
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced