Ep. 203 | Chinese Martial Arts, Wing Chun, and Ip Man (Part 1)

Welcome to a two-part series that offers up a survey of the development of martial arts in China from the mythical times of the Yellow Emperor to the present day.  We actually won’t get into the Wing Chun style of kung fu until the next episode. 

For now, let’s review the China history timeline and see how these martial arts embraced by millions and millions around the world slowly developed through the centuries.  This will serve as the setup to the next episode when we zero in on one particular style of martial arts and one of its best-known masters.

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Terms in Episode

Pinyin/TermChineseEnglish/Meaning
Bátuó跋陀The first abbot of Shaolin Temple
Bìyǎn Hú碧眼胡The Blue-Eyed Barbarian
Bā Guà八卦The Eight Trigrams
Bā Guà Zhǎng八卦掌Eight-Trigram-Palm
Bǎi Jiā百家The 100 Schools of Thought who sprang up during the Spring & Autumn Period
Bǐ Shǒu匕首Another kind of dagger
Chang’an长安Ancient capital of several dynasties. Present day Xian
ChánChan Buddhism (a.k.a. Zen Buddhism)
Chán Quán Héyī禅拳合一to unify Chan Buddhism and Shàolín-style Martial Arts
Chī Yóu蚩尤A warlike, hero king to the Miao people, a character from mythical times who was both an opponent of the (also mythical) Yellow Emperor at the Battle of Zhuolu (also mythical).
Chǔ Hàn Contention楚汉之战The epic showdown between Liu Bang and Xiang Yu for the control of China. It ended in 202 BCE
Dámó达摩A name Bodhidharma is better known by
Dǎogē Jiāngjūn倒戈将军Shi Yousan nickname: The Defector General
Dǒng Hǎichuān董海川Teacher and master of Ba Gua Zhang style of boxing.
an axe
small and large intestine, gall bladder, bladder and stomach
Guóshù国术The National Arts (as opposed to Wu Shu). The PRC changed it back later on.
Gāixià垓下之战The deciding battle during the Chu-Han Contention between the two great heroes Liu Bang and Xiang Yu in 202 BCE
A dagger axe
Huáshān华山One of the Five Great Mountains (in Shaanxi)
Huò Yuánjiǎ霍元甲The force behind the creation of the Chin Woo Athletic Association that did so much for the teaching and propagation of Chinese martial arts
Huīzōng徽宗帝Northern Song emperor who was on duty when the walls came crumbling down in the 1120’s
Huǒyào火药Gunpowder
Héngshān衡山One of the Five Great Mountains (in Hunan)
Héngshān恒山one of the Five Great Mountains (located in Shanxi)
Jiànfǎ劍法Sword Play
Jiǎo Dǐ角抵the oldest known form of wrestling in China
Jūnzǐ君子gentleman aristocrat as defined by this Rú school
A halberd
Kangxi康熙Early Qing Dynasty emperor…one of the greats
Kwai Chang CaineDavid Carradine’s character from the TV series Kung Fu
Liáng Wǔdì梁武帝Emperor Wǔ of Liáng…he reigned 502-549
Liù Yì六艺The Six Arts (see below)
Luó Hàn罗汉The original 500 disciples of The Buddha
Luó Hàn Shíbāshǒu罗汉十八手The Luó Hàn 18 Hands
Líu Bāng刘邦Founder of the Han Dynasty, also known as Han Gaozu
Lónghǔ Mountain龙虎山One of the Four Sacred Mountains of Daoism
Lǐ Jì礼记The Book of Rites
Lǐ Zìchéng李自成Rebel during the last years of the Ming Dynasty who helped bring the house down.
lǐ, lè, shè, yù, shū and shù礼, 乐 射, 舆, 书, 数Understanding the rites, music, archery, charioteering, Calligraphy and Math
Miáo苗族One of China’s largest ethnic minorities. Also known as the Hmong
máoA pike or spear
Nánběi Cháo南北朝Northern & Southern Dynasties period
Nèigōng内功Inner Gong
Pútídámó菩提达摩Bodhidharma, who brought Chan Buddhism and kung fu to Shaolin
Qiánlóng乾隆Qing dynasty emperor who reigned from the 1730’s to 1790’s
QiāngA long spear…It’s also the character for gun
qìgōng气功A system of health promotion that involves breathing, body posture and other things.
Qíyūn Mountain齐云山One of the Four Sacred Mountains of Daoism
Qīngchéng Mountain青城山One of the Four Sacred Mountains of Daoism
Shuāi Jiāo摔跤Another ancient form of martial arts
Shàolín Quánshì少林拳式Shaolin Fist style or Shaolin style kung fu
shìa knight or knight errant
Shí Yǒusān石友三Republican era warlord who, among other baggage he carries, also stands accused of buying Shaolin Temple down
ShùArt or style
Shǎo Shì少室The mountain peak of Song Shan where Shaolin Temple is located
shǒubó手搏An ancient form of boxing
Shǔi Hǔ Zhuàn水浒传The Water Margin (among many other names). One of the classics of Chinese literature
Sì Jiù四旧The Four Olds (of the Cultural Revolution)
Sōng Shān嵩山one of the Five Great Mountains.
Sūnzǐ孙子A.k.a. Sun Tzu, author of The Art of War
Tiāndìhuì天地会The Heaven and Earth Society
Tài Jí Tǔ Shuō太极图说The Diagram explaining of the Supreme Ultimate
Tàijíquán太极拳Tai Ji Quan
Tàishān泰山One of the Five Great Mountains (near Jinan in Shandong)
tánglánggōu螳螂沟The praying mantis hook
tánglánquán螳螂拳praying mantis style of boxing
Wàigōng外功Outer Gong
Wáng Lǎng王朗Creator of the Praying Mantis Style of martial arts
Wénxǔan文选a literary anthology written during the Liáng Dynasty 502-557
Martial or military
Wǔ Qín Xì五禽戲The Five Animal Exercise that took its inspiration from the movements of the tiger, deer, bear, ape and bird
Wǔ Zétiān武则天Empress of China during the Tang Dynasty (and a whole lot more). A major benefactor of Buddhism during her long period of leadership.
Wǔdāng gōngfu武当功夫Wu Tang Kung Fu
Wǔdāng Mountains武当山One of the Four Sacred Mountains of Daoism
wǔshù武术Martial arts
wǔxiá武侠A genre of fiction about martial arts heroes of ancient times
Wǔxíngquán五形拳Five Animals Style martial arts
Wǔyì武艺Another name for martial arts
Xia Dynasty夏朝Mythical dynasty (around 2070 to 1600 BCE) that preceded the Shang
Xiàng Yǔ项羽King of Chu who was defeated at the Battle of Gaixia by the forces of the Han king Liu Bang
Xiàowén孝文Northern Wei King who gave the go-ahead to build Shaolin Temple in 495
yuèA kind battle axe or halberd
Yì Jīng易经The I Ching or Book of Changes, one of. The oldest books in the world
Yìhé义和Righteous and harmonious
Yìhé Quán义和拳The Righteous and Harmonious Fists
Yǒng Chūn咏春Wing Chun (style of kung fu)
Zhuōlù zhī Zhàn涿鹿之战The epic and fantastical battle between the forces of Chi You and the Yellow Emperor sometime around 2500 BCE
Zhōnghuá Guóshù Guǎn中华国术馆The Central Guo Shu Institute
Zhōu Dūnyí周敦颐One of the five founders of Neo Confucianism. A Northern Song era polymath and author of the Tai Ji Tu Shuo (see below)
Zhōu Wén Wáng周文王The founder of the Zhou Dynasty, father of King Wu and the Duke of Zhou, inventor of the 8 Trigrams and a whole lot more
ZhǎngPalm
Zànginternal organs, the heart, liver, spleen, lung and kidney
Zájù杂剧A four-act poetic drama
精武体育会精武体育会Jīng Wǔ (Chin Woo) Athletic Association

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Ep. 204 | Chinese Martial Arts, Wing Chun, and Ip Man (Part 2)

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Ep. 202 | The History of China-Vietnam Relations (Part 6)