Tenalri was a martial art that was known by the Romulan civilization. To compare it to a Human counterpart, it was described as being similar to Kick boxing. It was created several hundreds years ago by occupants of the streets of the larger cities. These individuals often haunted the streets where they began fighting with one another as well as committed petty crimes. Eventually, they began focusing on one another and fighting amongst themselves where skills in combat were regarded as a mark of respect, superiority as well as power. This brought not only prestige but wealth amongst these practitioners.