BJJ Encyclopedia

Academy

The school or gym where you train. Many students call it their team.

Americana

Reverse keylock shoulder attack

Comes from: Side Control, Mount

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - 1 Stripe

Arm Triangle

Head and arm choke

Comes from: Side Control, Mount

Taught in: BJJ Blue Belt

Armbar

Hyperextending elbow joint with hips

Comes from: Closed Guard, Mount, Knee on Belly, Back Mount

Leads to: Roll Through

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - 1 Stripe, BJJ Purple Belt

Back Mount

Behind opponent with hooks in

Comes from: Back Take, Turtle to Back

Leads to: RNC, Bow & Arrow, Armbar, Chin Tuck

Taught in: BJJ Blue Belt

Back Take

Transitioning to back control

Comes from: De La Riva, Mount

Leads to: Back Mount

Taught in: BJJ Blue Belt

Base

Your balance and connection to the mat that keep you from being swept.

Baseball Choke

Collar choke with baseball grip

Comes from: Knee on Belly

Belt

A belt is a rank, one position in a discipline's ordered rank system, such as the white-through-black-through-red progression in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Black Belt Legacy records a person's belt as part of their rank record, tied to the promoter who awarded it.

Bow & Arrow

Collar choke with leg control

Comes from: Back Mount

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ)

A grappling art built on leverage, positions and submissions, where a smaller person can control and submit a larger one.

Bridge & Roll

Explosive hip bridge escape

Comes from: Mount

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - 2 Stripes

Butterfly Guard

Hooks inside thighs, excellent for sweeps

Comes from: Open Guard

Leads to: Butterfly Sweep, Guillotine, Z-Guard

Taught in: BJJ Blue Belt

Butterfly Sweep

Hook lift sweep

Comes from: Butterfly Guard, X-Guard

Leads to: Mount

Taught in: BJJ Blue Belt

Calf Slicer

Compression lock on calf

Chin Tuck

Defending against chokes

Comes from: Back Mount, RNC

Choke

A submission that restricts blood flow to the brain by pressure on the sides of the neck.

See also: RNC, Guillotine, Triangle

Claim (claiming a profile)

Claiming is how a real person takes ownership of their own entry on the lineage tree: they register, confirm their rank and the teacher who promoted them, and submit any supporting evidence. A steward with review permission reviews the claim before the profile attaches to the claimant's account, and claiming is free.

Closed Guard

Legs wrapped around opponent, controlling posture

Leads to: Armbar, Triangle, Omoplata, Kimura, Guillotine, Cross Collar, Scissor Sweep, Flower Sweep, Open Guard

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - Fundamentals

Cross Collar

Classic gi choke from guard

Comes from: Closed Guard

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - 1 Stripe

D'Arce

Arm-in guillotine from side

Comes from: Side Control

De La Riva

Hook behind far leg, off-balancing

Comes from: Open Guard

Leads to: X-Guard, Back Take

Taught in: BJJ Blue Belt

Double Leg

Wrestling takedown both legs

Comes from: Standing

Leads to: Side Control

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - Fundamentals, BJJ Purple Belt

Drilling

Repeating a technique with a cooperative partner until it becomes automatic.

Elbow-Knee

Frame escape from mount

Comes from: Mount

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - 2 Stripes

Escape

Getting out of a bad position or submission and back to guard or to your feet.

See also: Hip Escape, Bridge & Roll, Elbow-Knee

Ezekiel

Sleeve assisted choke from mount

Comes from: Mount

Flower Sweep

Off-balancing with hip bump

Comes from: Closed Guard

Leads to: Mount

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - Fundamentals

Frame

Creating defensive structure

Comes from: Side Control

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - 1 Stripe

Gi

The heavy cotton uniform and belt worn for traditional training. Its collar and sleeves can be gripped, which opens up collar chokes and sleeve grips.

See also: Cross Collar, Loop Choke

Grip

How you hold your partner, for example on the collar, sleeve, wrist or leg. Grips steer most exchanges.

See also: Grip Break, Hand Fight

Grip Break

Breaking opponent grips

Guard

Any bottom position where you use your legs to control your partner and stop them from passing to side control or mount.

See also: Closed Guard, Open Guard, Half Guard

Guard pass

Getting past your partner's legs from the top to reach a dominant position such as side control.

See also: Toreando Pass, Knee Slice, Leg Drag

Guillotine

Front headlock choke

Comes from: Closed Guard, Butterfly Guard, Turtle

Taught in: BJJ Blue Belt

Half Guard

One leg trapped between yours

Comes from: Z-Guard

Leads to: Side Control, Kimura, Re-Guard, Heel Hook, Knee Bar

Taught in: BJJ Blue Belt, BJJ Purple Belt

Hand Fight

Grip fighting for control

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - 1 Stripe, BJJ Purple Belt

Heel Hook

Rotational knee/ankle attack

Comes from: X-Guard, Half Guard

Taught in: BJJ Purple Belt

Hip Escape

Shrimping to create space

Comes from: Side Control

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - Fundamentals, BJJ White Belt - 2 Stripes

Joint lock

A submission that bends or twists a joint past its normal range, such as the elbow, shoulder, knee or ankle.

See also: Armbar, Kimura, Heel Hook

Kimura

Double wristlock shoulder attack

Comes from: Closed Guard, Z-Guard, Half Guard, Side Control

Knee Bar

Hyperextending knee joint

Comes from: Half Guard

Taught in: BJJ Purple Belt

Knee on Belly

Knee pressing on stomach, high mobility

Comes from: Side Control

Leads to: Armbar, Baseball Choke, Mount

Taught in: BJJ Blue Belt

Knee Slice

Cutting knee through guard

Leads to: Side Control

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - Fundamentals

Leg Drag

Dragging leg across body

Leads to: Side Control

Taught in: BJJ Blue Belt

Lineage tree

A lineage tree is Black Belt Legacy's public, browsable record of who promoted whom inside one discipline or family line. It is built from person records connected by promotions, explorable from any listed person back toward the root.

Loop Choke

Collar choke with arm trapped

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - 1 Stripe

Mount

Sitting on opponent's torso, maximum control

Comes from: Mount Advance, Knee on Belly, Scissor Sweep, Flower Sweep, Butterfly Sweep

Leads to: Armbar, Americana, Ezekiel, Back Take, Arm Triangle, Bridge & Roll, Elbow-Knee

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - 1 Stripe

Mount Advance

Side control to mount

Comes from: Side Control

Leads to: Mount

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - Fundamentals

No-gi

Training without the gi, usually in a rash guard and shorts. Clothing grips are not allowed, so control comes from underhooks, wrist grips and body position.

See also: Underhook, Hand Fight

Omoplata

Shoulder lock using legs

Comes from: Closed Guard, Spider Guard

Taught in: BJJ Purple Belt

Open Guard

Feet on hips/shoulders, creating distance

Comes from: Closed Guard

Leads to: Spider Guard, De La Riva, X-Guard, Butterfly Guard, Triangle

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - 1 Stripe, BJJ Blue Belt

Oss

A word used in many academies to greet, show respect or say I understand.

Passport

A Passport is a person's one global identity record on Black Belt Legacy, the same record no matter how many lineage trees, ranks, or organizations they appear in. It holds identity facts like display name and avatar, kept separate from any single rank or tree.

Position

Where your body is in relation to your partner's. BJJ teaches position before submission: control first, then attack.

See also: Mount, Side Control, Back Mount

Posture

Keeping your spine straight and head up so your partner cannot break you down or attack.

See also: Posture Up

Posture Up

Regaining posture in guard

Comes from: Triangle

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - 1 Stripe

Professor

The title many BJJ academies use for a black belt instructor.

Promoter

A promoter is the teacher who awarded a rank. Black Belt Legacy records the promoter as part of that rank's record and draws a line on the lineage tree from teacher to student.

Re-Guard

Recovering guard from bottom

Comes from: Half Guard

Taught in: BJJ Blue Belt

RNC

Rear naked choke from back

Comes from: Back Mount

Leads to: Chin Tuck

Taught in: BJJ Blue Belt

Roll Through

Rolling out of submissions

Comes from: Armbar

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - 2 Stripes

Rolling

Live sparring, where both partners resist and try to win position and submit.

Scissor Sweep

Classic closed guard sweep

Comes from: Closed Guard

Leads to: Mount

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - Fundamentals, BJJ Blue Belt

Scramble

Chaotic positional exchange

Comes from: Turtle

Taught in: BJJ Blue Belt

Shrimp

The hip escape movement: drive off one foot and move your hips away to make space.

See also: Hip Escape

Side Control

Dominant chest-to-chest top position

Comes from: Double Leg, Single Leg, Half Guard, Toreando Pass, Knee Slice, Leg Drag, Smash Pass, Stack Pass

Leads to: Mount Advance, Knee on Belly, Kimura, Americana, D'Arce, Arm Triangle, Hip Escape, Frame

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - Fundamentals, BJJ Blue Belt

Single Leg

Wrestling takedown one leg

Comes from: Standing

Leads to: Side Control

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - Fundamentals, BJJ Purple Belt

Smash Pass

Pressure passing with weight

Leads to: Side Control

Spider Guard

Feet in biceps with sleeve grips

Comes from: Open Guard

Leads to: Triangle, Omoplata

Taught in: BJJ Blue Belt

Sprawl

Defensive position against takedowns, hips back

Comes from: Standing

Leads to: Turtle

Taught in: BJJ Blue Belt

Stack Pass

Folding opponent over

Leads to: Side Control

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - 1 Stripe

Standing

Upright neutral position, start of most exchanges

Leads to: Double Leg, Single Leg, Sprawl

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - Fundamentals

Steward

A steward is the person who reviews a claim before it is marked verified: a site admin, a tree admin, an editor of a branch or of a single person's entry, or anyone else given explicit permission to review. Verification on Black Belt Legacy is always a human decision made by a steward, never an automatic one.

Straight Ankle

Achilles tendon compression

Taught in: BJJ Purple Belt

Stripe

A stripe is a degree mark on a belt showing incremental progress within that rank; colored belts carry zero to four stripes, and black, coral, and red belts carry degrees numbered one through ten using the same mark. Black Belt Legacy records this as the rank's degree and shows it on the belt in the tree and on a profile.

Submission

A choke or joint lock that makes your partner tap. Apply it slowly and with control in training.

See also: Armbar, Triangle, RNC

Sweep

Reversing from the bottom of guard to the top position.

See also: Scissor Sweep, Flower Sweep, Butterfly Sweep

Takedown

Taking a standing partner down to the mat.

See also: Double Leg, Single Leg

Tap

Tapping your partner or the mat, or saying tap, to show you give up. Training stops the moment someone taps.

Technical Stand

Safe stand up from ground

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - Fundamentals

The Bob Bass lineage

Bob Bass is a 7th Degree Coral Belt who, by Black Belt Legacy's record, was the first black belt Rigan Machado promoted and later the first American Rigan Machado promoted to coral belt. The students Bob Bass has promoted are recorded on the tree under him. His presence on the record is a lineage fact, not an endorsement, partnership, or approval of Black Belt Legacy.

The Dirty Dozen

The Dirty Dozen is the historical name for the first twelve non-Brazilian practitioners to earn a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Black Belt Legacy's record includes five of them who were promoted by Rigan Machado: Bob Bass, Rick Williams, David Meyer, Chris Haueter, and John Will. Their names on the tree are lineage facts, not endorsements of the platform, and not evidence that any of them has a business relationship with it.

The Machado lineage

The Machado lineage is the branch of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu that runs from Carlos Gracie Sr through Carlos Gracie Jr to Rigan Machado, a 9th Degree Red Belt. It is the first lineage tree Black Belt Legacy built, recording Rigan Machado and the students promoted under him. His appearance on the tree is a lineage fact the record keeps, not an endorsement of Black Belt Legacy, and not a partnership or approval.

Toe Hold

Twisting foot/ankle lock

Taught in: BJJ Purple Belt

Toreando Pass

Bullfighter style pass around legs

Leads to: Side Control

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - Fundamentals, BJJ Blue Belt

Triangle

Choking with legs in figure-four

Comes from: Closed Guard, Open Guard, Spider Guard

Leads to: Posture Up

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - 1 Stripe, BJJ Purple Belt

Turtle

Defensive balled-up position on knees

Comes from: Sprawl

Leads to: Turtle to Back, Scramble, Guillotine

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - Fundamentals, BJJ Blue Belt

Turtle to Back

Taking back from turtle

Comes from: Turtle

Leads to: Back Mount

Taught in: BJJ Blue Belt

Underhook

Establishing inside position

Taught in: BJJ White Belt - 2 Stripes, BJJ Blue Belt

Verified rank

A verified rank is a promotion record that a steward has reviewed and marked verified. A rank can also be unverified, disputed, or pending review. Verified means a steward reviewed the record itself, whether it was originally imported or newly claimed, not that the practitioner personally supplied proof for every detail.

Wrist Lock

Small joint manipulation

X-Guard

Legs crossed under opponent, sweep position

Comes from: Open Guard, De La Riva

Leads to: Butterfly Sweep, Heel Hook

Taught in: BJJ Purple Belt

Z-Guard

Knee shield half guard variant

Comes from: Butterfly Guard

Leads to: Half Guard, Kimura

Taught in: BJJ Blue Belt, BJJ Purple Belt