The Sundanese pencak silat of West Java may be called silat Sunda or silat Bandung. In the Sunda language they are generically referred to as penca (dialect form of pencak), ameng, ulin or maen po (from the word main meaning "play"). Ameng is the more respectful term, while ulin and maen po are of lower speech levels. Sunda systems are easily identified by the prefix ci. Pronounced "chi", it comes from the Sundanese word cai meaning water. IPSI recognises Cimacan (tiger style), Ciular (snake style), and Pamonyet (monkey style) as among the oldest existing pencak silat. Cimacan is said to have been created by a Buddhist monk. The most prominent system of West Java is penca Cimande, founded by Embah Kahir in Cimande village of the Sukabumi area around 1760.[15] Several stories of its origin exist, even tying it to the older Rama Sukana legend of Sumatra. The system itself is said to have origins dating back much further than Embah Kahir, and is believed by many masters to be the original penca of West Java. Cimande students begin by learning to fight from a seated position before they are taught footwork, a hallmark of Sundanese penca.
