Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is a martial art and combat sport that focuses on grappling and ground fighting. It was derived from the Japanese martial art of Kodokan Judo in the early 20th century, which was itself then a recently-developed system (founded in 1882), based on multiple schools (or Ryu) of Japanese jujutsu.
The standards for grading and belt promotions vary between schools, but the widely accepted measures of a person's skill and rank in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu are: The amount of technical knowledge they can demonstrate, and their performance in sparring and competition.
Technical knowledge is judged by the number of techniques a person can perform, and the level of skill with which he or she performs them in sparring and competition. This allows for smaller and older practitioners to be recognized for their knowledge though they may not be the strongest fighters in the school. It is a distinctly individual sport, and practitioners are encouraged to adapt the techniques to make them work for their body type, strategic preferences, and level of athleticism. The ultimate criterion is the ability to execute the techniques successfully, rather than strict stylistic compliance.
Competitions play an important role in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu gradings, as they allow an instructor to compare the level of his students against those of the same rank from other schools. A belt promotion may be given after success in a competition, particularly at the lower belt levels. A promotion might also be awarded when a person can submit most people in his school of the same rank, e.g. a white belt who consistently submits most other white belts in sparring and is starting to catch blue belts.- Definition courtesy of Wikipedia and licensed for share.
