Editing Tonfa (section)

===Regional variants===
[[File:Scène de combat (bas-relief du Bayon) (2334494617).jpg|thumb|left|220px|Martial artists of the [[Khmer Empire]] wield arm shields at the forearm similar to tonfa in this bas-relief at [[Cambodia]]'s 12th/13th century [[Bayon]] temple]]
Although the tonfa is most commonly associated with the Okinawan martial arts, its origin is heavily debated. One of the most commonly cited origins is China, although origins from [[Indonesia]] to [[Okinawa Prefecture|Okinawa]] are also possible.<ref name="jitsu">{{cite web|url=http://www.japanesejujitsu.org/a-brief-history-of-the-tonfa/|title=A Brief History of the Tonfa|author=David|date=11 February 2009|website=japanesejujitsu.org|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180115164634/http://www.japanesejujitsu.org/a-brief-history-of-the-tonfa/|archive-date=15 January 2018|url-status=dead|access-date=29 May 2017}}</ref><ref name="canisius">{{cite web|title=History|url=http://www-cs.canisius.edu/~cody2/Library/Database/Tonfa.htm|website=cs.canisius.edu|access-date=29 May 2017|archive-date=14 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160514215210/http://www-cs.canisius.edu/~cody2/Library/Database/Tonfa.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="rkagb">{{cite web|title=Tonfa|url=http://rkagb.com/weapons_tonfa|website=RKAGB|date=4 June 2016|access-date=29 May 2017}}</ref> Although modern martial artists often cite that the tonfa derives from a millstone handle used by peasants,<ref name="History" /> martial arts in Okinawa were historically practised by the upper classes who imported martial arts from China and elsewhere, and it is likely that the weapon was imported from outside Okinawa. The Chinese and Malay words for the weapon (''guai'' and ''topang'' respectively) literally mean "[[crutch]]", which may suggest the weapon originating from such device. In Cambodia and Thailand, a similar weapon is used consisting of a pair of short clubs tied onto the forearms, known in [[Thai language|Thai]] as ''mai sok'' and in [[Khmer language|Khmer]] as ''staupe''.  In Thailand and Malaysia, the mai sok often has a similar design to the tonfa, with a perpendicular handle rather than being tied on.<ref name="History" /><ref name="jitsu" /> In Vietnam, a similar weapon called the song xỉ is made of a pair of steel or aluminum bars. The song xỉ is used as a small shield to protect the forearms and has a sharp tip at the end to attack.<ref>Nghia, S. (2017, February 19). song xỉ - binh khí nhà Tây Sơn. Vietnam Pictorial. Retrieved January 17, 2022, from https://vietnam.vnanet.vn/vietnamese/song-xi---binh-khi-nha-tay-son/274089.html</ref>
[[Image:Staupe5.jpg|100px|thumb|A pair of Cambodian "tonfa" or staupe which is an arm shield with a pointed edge]]