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WHAT DOES OSS MEAN IN BJJ?

By Benjamin Strusnik, July 01, 2022

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is a highly cultured and diverse Martial Art, as these days many people from all ethnicities are training in the grappling art. The growth of the sport has seen innovations come from all corners of the world. Nowadays in bjj many practitioners are travelling abroad to master their craft and help spread the art as far and as wide as they can.

What This Article Covers:

The grappling art has become mainstream in countries like Brazil, America, Australia and parts of Europe, this is largely due to the rise of televised international competitions and the popularity of hard core organisations like the UFC. Over the course of the Martial Arts progression many sayings like oss have been picked up and used as bjj terminology.

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WHAT IS BRAZILIAN JIU JITSU

Brazilian Jiu Jiitsu is one of the world's most complicated martial arts systems, as it incorporates a dynamic series of high-flying and advanced movements. BJJ starts on the feet and a practitioner will execute an attempted takedown, which consists of judo and wrestling attributes. Once the fight has hit the ground the practitioner will be looking to use dominant control positioning to subdue their opponents. They will then use fast paced transitions to maneuver around a grounded opponent. In BJJ, the winner is the competitor that has more points at the end of an allotted time limit, the only other way to win the fight is to achieve a submission, which are predominantly chokeholds and joint locks which are leverage based.

The bjj philosophy is all about taking away the space when you are on top of an opponent, and creating space when you are underneath an opponent. The art of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is a formidable Martial Art that requires a practitioner to train hard, focus intently, and use technical proficiency. Learning the art of BJJ can take an extremely long time, but through the guidance and nurture of a professional academy coach, students will be able to reach all their goals as they train in this exceptional and reputable combat system.

WHAT IS THE ORIGIN OF BJJ

The history of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu dates back to the early days in the 1900’s. Before it became BJJ, the art was more of a combative form of Jiu Jitsu. Jigoro Kano was the famous artist that developed his knowledge into what would later become Kodokan Judo. Jigoro's most skillful student was a Japanese Martial Artist and prizefighter named Mitsuyo Maeda. After becoming quite proficient in the arts, Mitsuyo migrated to Brazil with a small colony of Japanese immigrants. It was here that Mitsuyo met Gastao Gracie, who helped him build a settlement and gave him work demonstrating his Judo techniques. As a thankyou to Gastao, Mitsuyo agreed to teach his art to Gastao's son Carlos Gracie.

Carlos developed a great rapport with Mitsuyo, as he excelled in learning the Judo way. Carlos would then pass on all of his knowledge to his brothers Oswaldo, Gastao Jr, George and Helio. After training in the art for some time, Helio discovered that his size and stature put limitations on his ability to utilise many of the throwing techniques. Helio started to develop his own combat system based on Judo, which incorporated the use of choke holds and leverage based joint locks. This new formidable fighting system was designed for a smaller opponent to defeat a larger opponent, as Helio became one of the main influences who invented brazilian jiu jitsu.

Helio and Carlos would then teach their sons what they called Gracie Jiu Jitsu. Athletes like Rolls, Rorion, Rickson, Royce, Renzo and Royler stamped their names throughout the culture in Brazil. The Gracie clan would fight anyone, as challengers came from far and wide. There were many Vale Tudo fights against Brazilian Luta Livre and Professional Japanese Wrestlers, as feuds between many of the camps grew out of hand. This resulted in dojo storms and bare knuckle fights in carparks and on the beaches, as they battled for the number one ranking position. The Gracie clan were too strong as champions like Rolls and Rickson Gracie dominated the landscape of Brazil.

In the early 1990's, Rorion Gracie moved to the United States of America to try and spread Gracie Jiu Jitsu. As Rorion began working in movies, he was choreographing fight scenes in movies like Lethal Weapon. This eventually led to the televised event called the Ultimate Fighting Championship, where combat athletes from all styles would match up against each other, to see which style was the best. Rickson Gracie was the clear favourite to take the centre of the octagon, but due to the nature of his fame in Japan Rorion decided to use his younger brother Royce instead. Royce was considerably more inexperienced then Rickson, but he eventually went on to win the event which put Gracie Jiu Jitsu on the map. After some turbulent times between many of the Gracie clan members, Rorion filed lawsuits against other members in his family for trademark infringement. As a result of Rorion's overzealousness, many of the Gracie clan members began using the term Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, which has now become one of the most popular forms of Martial Arts in the world today.

CAN ANYONE TRAIN IN BJJ

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu is a Martial Art that people from all age groups or fitness levels can train in. Helio Gracie developed BJJ as a way for smaller and weaker people to defeat larger and stronger opponents. This means that no matter what someone's stature is, they will be able to improve their skills In BJJ considerably. Students come into a BJJ academy heavily overweight or extremely unfit and in a matter of months the transformations are incredible. All students who train will achieve a great level of functional fitness, and an increased level of self confidence they never knew existed in them. Some people start BJJ in their later life, and some begin as children, and more recently the rise of women in jiu jitsu is on a significant incline.

Many students take up BJJ as a way to learn self defense or to help cope with mental illness, depression and forms of mental and physical abuse. The benefits of training in the Brazilian art are unlimited, as many students talk about Jiu Jitsu like it's a form of therapy. The community that surrounds BJJ are incredibly understanding and empathetic towards all sorts of problems that people encounter. All coaches want to help people in the community overcome their obstacles, and through the practise of Martial Arts, students are able to move past their adversity and forge new relationships and build new pathways towards a greater life and becoming a better person.

DIFFERENT TERMINOLOGY IN BJJ

The art of BJJ has a wide variety of terminology attached, this is mainly due to the complexity of the art. With such a complex series of movements, certain terms need to be remembered so a student can best utilise the assets involved. There are different kinds of terminology, like words that explain positions. Terms like mount, side control, back control, knee ride, turtle, north south and scarf hold are all positions that practitioners utilise in a match. There are other more complicated terms like underhook, overhook, crossface, armdrag, necktie, windscreen wipe, pummel, leg drag, gable grip, knee shield, frame, invert and shrimp, as all of these terms have a significant meaning which can help a student win a competitive match.

Learning some of the facts about jiu jitsu can be quite challenging, as there is a multitude of complexities attached. Many coaches and members of an academy will come out in droves to support students that love to compete. Sometimes when a competitor is embroiled deep in a match they will often look to the sidelines for advice from their coaches. This is why it is important to learn terminology, so they can understand the comments that their coaches are relaying. Some of the terms they might hear is umpa, hip escape, pass the guard, posture, squeeze, pull the head and sprawl, as all of these terms have significant validity towards how it might help them progress their position. Some other terms that a student might hear is let’s flow roll, wanna drill, keep it playful, everyday porrada and oss, all of these sayings have meaning and are frequently used by practitioners worldwide.

THE MEANING OF OSS IN BJJ

Once a student has been around a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu club for long enough they might hear the term Oss. Many students will often wonder what Oss means, as many people around the BJJ community will say this word. The term Oss is used in many other Martial Arts styles and has a profound meaning attached. The word Oss originates from Japan and has two loose meanings, the first meaning is Onegai Shimasu and translates to "if you will" which is a polite invitation. The second meaning is Oshi Shinobu meaning "to endure under pressure" or "when someone pushes you to the limit you will persevere". This traditionally originated in Okinawa Japan, even though it is not actually a Japanese term it is still used in an everyday sense. Oss was originally used as a way to invite an opponent into training or a competitive fight. Some people believe Oss is yelled to invoke a person's Ki which means vital energy or the person's spirit, and was largely used by the Samurai in Feudal Japan. In most versions of the term Oss, it is usually met with both practitioners bowing at each other before or after combat.

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CAN ANYONE IN BJJ SAY OSS

There is no special requirement or cultural significance that would stop a practitioner from saying Oss. The term is just a fun and combative way to show respect to another practitioner. A student doesn't have to be a high level or a seasoned grappler, they just have to be a student of the art and are allowed to say the term. Some people might feel funny saying the term Oss, but in all honesty the traditions behind this terminology dates back to the Warriors of the Samurai. Many students love the traditions behind Martial Arts, and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu spares no expense, as the right old tradition of saying Oss has become prolific across the globe. Students from all walks of life are exchanging the terminology with their opponents, training partners, and coaches, as the spirit behind the term is breeding a great culture.

WHY IS THE TERM OSS SO POPULAR AMONGST STUDENTS

The popularity of the term Oss may be somewhat of a mystery, but it is safe to say that most practitioners that train in BJJ love the elements of tradition and culture. To use the term Oss is to feel the presence of the Samurai, which does kind of sound cool. If the term Oss really does invoke someone's spirit then it is no wonder students from all over the world say Oss to each other. Saying Oss is even popular amongst many other forms of Martial Arts including Karate, as they use it as a term of commencing combat. There can be a lot said about a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu practitioner, but one thing is for sure there is a lot of quirkiness within the sport. Before a jiu jitsu fight when two combatants bow to each other and yell Oss, it does have a symbolic, lighthearted and funny ring to it. This is predominantly why BJJ is one of the most sought after Martial Arts in the world, as students can be themselves, have fun and become incredibly conditioned athletes.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, the term Oss is here to stay, as the age-old tradition of this saying has rooted deep into BJJ culture. Watching students bow to their opponents and proclaim the term Oss, may be funny to some but has a warrior's integrity about it.

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The future of the Martial Art is growing in leaps and bounds, as many practitioners continue to help evolve this prestigious combative form. With the rise of BJJ tournaments and the notoriety of superstar athletes, the term Oss will remain heavily embedded in the future and the culture of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

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