History and explanation of styles taught in the United States.
For convenience, modern Asian weaponless striking and blocking arts may be divided into four major groups. These were originated or developed in China, Okinawa and Japan, Korea, and Southeast Asia. The vast majority of styles in the United States today can be traced to one or more of these areas of development.
China
The oldest and most influential of these groups is the Chinese martial arts. China was the cultural and military center of the Far East several millennia before the Christian era. Chinese systems of writing, government, art, warfare, etc., became the models from which the surrounding areas developed their own cultures.
Although there were many different styles within China, the general term for Chinese empty hand arts has been "Chung Gwo (center kingdom or China) ch'uan (fist) fa (way). The term now most widely used in China is "wu shu"(fighting hand or technique). The modern term "kung fu" is used in Hong Kong and the United States but not most of China. The term "kung fu" simply means accomplishment, expertise, or effort, so one might be a kung fu cook, or doctor, or martial artist.
Although there is evidence in stories and myths and from archaeological finds that fight�ing arts existed many centuries earlier, the oldest historical accounts of systematized fight�ing arts date from the middle to late Chou period in ancient China(1122;255 B.C.E.) Further developments were recorded in the two Han dynasties 206 B.C.E.; 220 A.D.) and in the Ch'in dynasties (265; 419 A.D.). Under Indian Buddhist influence, the so-called Shaolin systems evolved named after the temple where the Chan (Zen) Buddhist monk Bodhidharma taught in the fifth or sixth century A.C.E.. During the T'ang period (618; 906) Chinese martial arts underwent a great development and its influence can be seen in techniques and even the names used in neighboring countries (e.g., T'ang Su (Soo) Do in Korea, and the Okinawan character for "Tode" or "Karate" originally meant T'ang or China hand)
Chinese systems can be divided into two types, internal (nei‑chia or nei‑kung) and external (wai‑chia). The internal or soft styles stress soft, neutralizing, defensive movements based on inner tranquillity and balance. Examples of this type are T'ai Chi Ch'uan (developed under Taoist influence) and Pa Kua. The external or hard systems emphasize more offensive harder technique. Most of the later variations of Shaolin styles are in this category. The external systems include the Dragon, White Crane, Wing Chun, Hung Gar, Praying Mantis, Monkey, Choy Lee Fut, and other styles. The styles that developed in northern China used longer-range techniques including high kicks, whereas southern styles tended toward mostly hand combinations with low kicks.
All these Chinese styles, both hard and soft, when compared to the arts of Okinawa, Korea and Japan will appear to be more circular and soft and so in the U.S. are referred to as soft styles.
