Buber's Basque Page: Zipota

There is a Basque art similar to [the French fighting style] Savate called Zipota (shoe) which also survives and contains some stick-fencing. It is a very rough sport, involving a lot of leaping kicks and throws even in competition. The use of the Basque walking stick, a light five foot shepherd's staff, is taught in an aligned discipline called Malika. Several practitioners have competed very successfully in Savate-Boxe Francaise and la canne de combat.

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skyhawkb at hotmail dot com 19-Dec-2009 0:17	`#10589`
`i learned of the name from the internet when looking at world war 11 combatives and the vast mix that went into it.basque zipota they mentioned. see the articles of carl cestari and you'll see it mentioned in history.`

bubbascrub2008 at yahoo dot com
25-May-2009 1:50 #9651

There was a martial art taught in the farmlands of Spain. It was not called Zipota though. It was referred to as zapato. Spanish for shoe. Which is Savate French. My problem is that I was actually taught by my Spanish grandfather zapato, which is what the Spanish called Savate. It is no different than actual Savate of France. It is the same art. I only state this because of the fact that people are trying to say they are 2 seperate things when in fact they are the same. The fact that the people who claim to know this art bothers me. If you know Savate you know you know what the Spanish call zapato. In other words Savate and Zapato are just 2 ways of saying the same thing. Maybe in peoples defense they just don't know how to pronounce or write the proper word for it. Just a side note. Like other martial arts that have crossed borders it may be likely that different variants of the same techniques were taught. But I have researched what has been past on to me and here is what I found. The ranks I was given is the same as Savate as well as the kicks, punches,throws, sweeps, locks, and weapon techniques are the same as Savate. The biggest difference I see in the two is the way they are taught. In Spain Zapato is treated like a big secret and is mainly passed on through family members. I thought for a long time I held the techniques of a secret Spanish Art. That is not the case. I was just taught a French art that migrated into Spain. By the way zapatero means shoe expert and is what the Spanish called shoe repair guys as well as Savateurs. Anyway what bothers me most is that an art I have loved and practiced since I was five years old and what has been a family tradition is being made a mockery of by guys claiming to know it. As for Zapato as taught to me, it is nothing more than a different name for the French Art Savate. Maybe that will make since of it all. Like I said it is possible these people know this art and are just misinformed as to the name and the lack of difference from Savate. Anyway I did a lot of research to find the origin of the art my grandfather called Zapato and this is what I found. Bottom line the promotion system and the way the art is passed down may be different, but the techniques are the same as Savate. Therefore it is Savate as taught to Spanish decendants of Savateurs from Spain. If you are one of the guys claiming lineage in this art please refer to it by it's real name at least. The Lopez family as well as countless other spanish families have worked hard to pass on what they know as Zapato, basically the word for Savate in spanish, both mean shoe. It is also known as Zapato de la calle meaning the same as Savate de rue. Both mean shoe of the street. Hope I spelled the spanish right.

christiantrad at hotmail dot com
17-Apr-2009 13:13 #9446

To clear the Air. The reason it is a Basque art is that Zipota was developed by a Basque family living in Texas (Buitron). It has been taught for 7 generations.Every generation has added more to the Zipota style. The fourth Generation added a special brand of Boxing from Prof Isidro "Chilo" Chapa. The sixth generation has added Savate. Zipota is no longer a Martial Art. It is now called Danse De Rue Savate. Danse de Rue Savate has Zipota, Kenpo, Boxing, and Savate. It's founder is Paul Raymond Buitron III.

euskaralagun at gmail dot com
27-Aug-2008 6:30 #8178

I'm Basque and I've never heard anything about that """martial art""". I've looked up "3000 Hiztegia" and "Elhuyar Hiztegia" dictionaries and in both of them zipote means stomach (tripa in Spanish). So you can draw your own conclusions. Euskalduna naiz eta ez dut inoiz horrelako """arte martzialaren""" inguruko ezer entzun. 3000 eta Elhuyar hiztegietan bilatzen aritu naiz eta bietan zipote hitzak sabela edo tripa esan nahi du. Beraz, zuen ondorioak atera.

praliator1 at hotmail dot com 12-Apr-2008 18:50	`#7298`
`Zipota style is a fake, this sir invented all system i am form vasque country and i martial artist and never, never see or ear any about this suppouse martial art. This man is a savete or similar practicioner, that he change the name to dyscovered a new martial art. Is lastimous`

anom at anom dot com 11-Feb-2008 11:19	`#6954`
`Wait... Some guy is a matriarch?... that's funny. I'm Basque and never hear nothing about it, is some fake martial art from a McDojo.`

coolarrow at texas-hunts dot com
10-Feb-2008 23:28 #6950

actually Kevin Menard was at one time my student and became my first silver glove. Zipota was taught to me by my uncle Isidro Chapa who was taught be my Great Uncle Nicefore Buitron. Danse De Rue Savate is in partial to the majority of the system made up of the ebaketas and lerraduras as well as the sugaars of zipota. To the person stating objection it is easy to object what you do not know. I invite you to train for free at any of the seminar to find out for your self what Danse De Rue Savate is. Frankly what I hav been schooled in is very much real. It is true to what Mr. Buber states Menard mentioned this back in the early ages of the internet. Nonetheless, there are plenty nodays who claim what is not theirs. Prof. Paul R. Buitron III www.savatedansederue.com

xjefflarrieux at aol dot com 03-Sep-2007 17:33	`#5966`
`i've been searching for information on zipota for a while and have come up completely empty handed.`

angusmacbride at hotmail dot com
23-Aug-2007 21:20 #5889

It has never existed this "zipota" it�s only another american martial fake. There�s no other evidence apart from their promotional page and a wiki article made by themselves. An antique basque martial art that you can only practice in texas? give me a break! Nunca ha existido nada parecido a la "Zipota". Es s�lo otra enga�ifa marcial americana. S�lo hay evidencias en su p�gina promocional y en la entrada de la wikipedia hecha por ellos mismos. �Un antiguo arte marcial vasco que s�lo puedes practicar en Texas? venga, hombre.

nilgaius at sbcglobal dot net 01-May-2007 22:46	`#5102`
`Brothers, The only place to find this unique and absolutley devistating martial science is in Laredo Texas. The art of tejano combat is called Danse De Rue Savate. It is based upon the Basque Zipota. Paul Raymond Buitron is the Matriarch of this Style. Theres no one better in my opinion in a crisis situation,armed or empty handed.`

blas at buber dot net 12-Mar-2007 10:18	`#4755`
`Actually, this article appeared on my site long before Wikipedia was even conceived. The ones ripping off another are them.`

trash at dev dot null 12-Mar-2007 7:08	`#4753`
`ripped from wikipedia uncredited. nice.`

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Last updated: Tue, 05 Jan 2010 - 17:45:26

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