History And Evolution Of The Karambit

After a couple thousand years, this blade design is still cutting edge.

- Steve Tarani

​An ancient design, the karambit’s origins can be traced back to Sumatra, Java, and Malaysia, according to the oral history passed down from generation to generation and then onto me by my Indonesian masters. Due to regional variations, there have always been differences in design, depending on which island the blade came from.

For example, the karambit of Pulau Lombok, an island of the Indonesian Archipelago, and that of its northeastern neighbor, the island of Sumbawa, is said to have been traditionally a larger or “battlefield-sized” karambit — quite a bit bigger than its more personal-sized Javanese cousin.

According to the oral record, there is also another variation of the karambit that comes from Pulau Madura, an island located northeast of Java, which is traditionally larger and with more of a curve known as the klurit (pronounced “clure-eet”). There are also many different shapes and designs of the ancient combat karambit such as rajawali (bird-head shape) and others that include protruding spurs used for tearing flesh in the heat of battle — a coveted blade-performance requirement of the ancient world. Today, these features have been reduced to merely fanciful designs and, in most cases, ceremonial etchings.

Early Javanese blade smiths figured that Mother Nature had already developed the appropriate length and blade geometry of the ultimate edged tool, so they copied it. The tiger claw was used as the pattern for the evolution of a cutting instrument, which to this day, has no need for improvement. It is this original shape that was emulated by the first designers of the combat karambit.