For centuries, the filipino warrior has been noted in the handling of clubs, spear, and bladed weapons. In the Southern Philippines, the Muslims were known not only for the courage and ferocity in battle, but also in their craftsmanship of bladed weaponry. The Kris, Kampilan, Barong and the likes were held in synoynym with Muslim warriors.

When one thinks of Muslim warriors one automatically equates them as warriors with Kris in their hands. In general cannotation, this is true as no Southern warriors would feel properly dressed without this weapon:

In the Northern and Visayan provinces, the same is true. The itak (Chopping Knife) is part of the daily life. In the Philippines, being a primarily agricultural country, this is an essential farming implement and when the situation calls for it, can be utilized for it's primary being, i,e,, as a deadly weapon. The craftsmen who created this bladed weapons appeared at various times and places. In Batangas province, Philippines, there developed an industry that concentrate on making of deadly weapons like balisong knives.

It is claimed that "Perfecto de Leon" is the father of Balisong i the Philippines and records have it that the first one was made in 1905. With the advent of the Industrial revolution, requirements for the lowly "Itak" or bolo decreased and Perfecto de Leon turned to manufacturing knives and eventually to development and propagation of the balisong as a weapon truly Filipino Barrio Balisong shares the industry with the other near by barrios such as Pook, Buli, and Tolo.

After World War II, during what is known as the liberation period, balisong knives became popular among the American soldiers who bought them back with them to the Western World.Today, the balisong is again receiving an even greater popularity with the revival of martial arts and the impact of modern communications media such as print publications and features films. In some cases, the balisong is even referred to as "Ninja Knife", possibly the product of western creative mind, attributing to the right application but the wrong country of origin.

The traditional Filipino Handmade Balisong is composed of many parts. The blade are usally made from hign carbon spring steel and the handles are made of brass with inserts from natural materials. The Inserts are usually horse bone, kamagong or malayan iron wood, narra wood, and the rare visayan spotted deer.

Below is an illustration of the anatomy of a filipino balisong: