Wushu (武術 or 武术; pinyin: wǔshù) literally means "martial art". It is commonly used much the same way as the popular term kung fu, referring specifically to Chinese martial arts, but is in China also used as a general and formal term for any martial art. Today, many also use wushu, modern wushu or contemporary wushu as a name for the modern styles of Chinese martial arts that are practiced primarily for exhibition and competition.

Unlike Japanese and Korean martial arts such as Karate, Taekwondo or Jujutsu, all types of Wushu are practiced mainly in preconstructed forms (taolu in Chinese) practiced alone, which vary in length from couple of minutes to over 15 minutes.

History

Although there are a multitude of different Wushu styles which originate from a multitude of different sources, it is generally accepted that one of the earliest forms of Wushu can be traced to the Loyang Shaolin temple in Henan province. According to legend, the monk Bodhidharma (who also brought Zen buddhism to China) stayed there to teach the monks self-defence and bodily exercise techniques, which he apparently invented by meditating in a nearby cave for a long period of time. Later on, the basic exercises were complemented by more complicated routines, and the style spread eastwards and south, evolving eventually into hundreds of different styles and routines - amongst them the Korean Taekwondo and the Okinawan Karate.

Translation

The word wushu consists of two Chinese characters. 武 (wǔ), meaning martial or military, and 術 (shù), which translates into art, skill or method. Together these form "wǔshù" or "martial art". To be more precise, the first character 武 (wǔ) is actually a combination of two other characters: 止 (zhǐ) and 戈 (gē). The first means to stop or halt something, and the latter symbolizes an ancient Chinese weapon similar to a spear (notice that the stroke symbolizing a dagger on the side of the character 戈 is shelved). Because of this, many consider a more detailed translation of wushu to be "method to stop weapon" or "the art of stopping violence", more similar to the Western term self-defense. This aspect plays a major role in the philosophies that are present in many Chinese martial arts, which emphasize that the best way to defeat an enemy is to do so without fighting, and that the easiest way to not fight is to avoid situations that might lead to any fighting at all.

Styles of Wushu

As said before, there still exist literally hundreds of different styles and schools of Wushu in China, but generally they can be divided into a few distinct branches. Geographically, Wushu can be divided into Northern Shaolin-style Wushu and Southern Shaolin-style Wushu, mainly corresponding to either the Northern Shaolin temple or the Southern Shaolin temple, although nowadays the terms cover all kinds of styles originating either from the north or the south. The main difference about these two are that the Northern styles tend to emphazise kicks, jumps and generally fluid and rapid movement, as the Southern styles focus more on strong arm and hand techniques, and stable, immovable stances and footwork. Examples of the Northern styles include Changquan and the sword and broadsword routines used in contemporary Wushu competitions, and examples of the Southern styles include Nanquan, Houquan (monkey style) and Wing Chun.

Methodistically, Wushu can be divided into either the External styles, which include most of the Wushu styles in existence, and the Internal styles, which number only a few, Taijiquan being the most famous one. External styles are more traditional fighting arts, with emphasis on strength, speed, explosive power and stamina. Internal styles focus in the precise control of movements, the balance of bodily energies and the concept of Qi (same as the Japanese Chi), the life energy supposedly flowing through every human being. As said above, External styles include all other types of Wushu, except for Taijiquan, Xingyiquan and Baguazhang.

There is also a third division in styles, that being the division to either Contemporary Wushu or Traditional Wushu, which are discussed in more detail below.

Contemporary Wushu

Wushu, modern wushu, and contemporary wushu often refer to the modern recompilations of traditional wushu forms created in the People's Republic of China. These are practiced as a demonstration sport, much like gymnastics, and judged and given points according to specific rules. Originally practiced just in the PRC, the contemporary wushu forms have now spread all over the world through the International Wushu Federation, which holds the World Championships of Wushu every two years; the first World Championships were held in 1991 in Beijing.

Similar to gymnastics, there are separate events, the main ones being:

• Barehanded
  • 長拳 Changquan (Long Boxing)
  • 南拳 Nanquan (Southern Boxing)
  • 太極拳 Taijiquan (Taiji Boxing)

• Short Weapons
  • 刀 Dao (Broadsword)
  • 劍 Jian (Straightsword)
  • 太極劍 Taijijian (Taiji Straightsword)
  • 南刀 Nandao (Southern Broadsword)

• Long Weapons
  • 棍 Gun (Staff)
  • 槍 Qiang (Spear)
  • 南棍 Nangun (Southern Staff)

Most events were first set up in 1958.

Changquan refers to long-range extended wushu styles like Chaquan (查拳), Huaquan (華拳), Hongquan (洪拳), and Shaolinquan (少林拳), but the wushu event is a modern style derived from movements of these and other traditional styles. Changquan is the most widely-seen of the wushu events, and includes whirling, running, leaping, and acrobatics. Changquan is difficult to perform, requiring great flexibility and athleticism, and is often practiced from a young age.

Nanquan refers to wushu styles originating in south China (i.e., south of the Yangtze river), including Hongjiaquan (洪家拳), Cailifoquan (蔡李佛拳), and Yongchunquan (詠春拳). Many are known for vigorous, athletic movements with very stable, low stances and intricate hand movements. The wushu event is a modern style derived from movements of these and other traditional southern styles. Nanquan requires less flexibility than Changquan, has fewer acrobatics, and is thus easier for young adults to practice. This event was created in 1960.

Taijiquan is a wushu style famous for slow, relaxed movements, and often seen as an exercise method for old people. The wushu event is a modern recompilization based on the Yang (楊) style of Taijiquan, but also including movements of the Chen (陳), Wu (吳), Wu (武), and Sun (孫) styles.

Dao refers to any curved, one-sided sword/blade, but the wushu event is a Changquan method of using a medium-sized willow-leaf-shaped dao (柳葉刀).

Jian refers to any double-edged straight sword/blade, but the wushu event is a Changquan method of using the jian.

Gun (when pronunciated in pinyin, it sounds like gwun) refers to a long staff slightly less tall than the user with his arms stretched up, but the wushu event is a Changquan method of using the gun.

Qiang refers to a flexible spear with red hair attached to the spearhead, but the wushu event is a Changquan method of using the qiang.

Taijijian is an event using the jian based on traditional Taijiquan jian methods.

Nandao is a weapon that appears to be based on the butterfly swords of Yongchunquan, but has been lengthened and changed so that only one is used (as opposed to a pair). This event is a Nanquan method, and was created in 1992.

Nangun is a Nanquan method of using the gun. This event was created in 1992.

These events are performed using compulsory or individual routines in competition. Compulsory routines are those routines that have been already created for the athlete, resulting in each athlete performing basically the same set. Individual routines are routines that an athlete creates with the aid of his/her coach, while following certain rules for difficulty, number of acrobatics, etc.

International wushu competitions most often use compulsory routines, while high-level competitions in China most often use individual routines. In the past, single events did not use both compulsory and individual routines, but nowadays both can be used, at least in Chinese competitions and in the World Championships.

At present, China is bidding for wushu to be added to the Olympics, prompted by the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. To limit the number of medals awarded to the sport, the current proposal for wushu events is:

• Changquan (Men)
• Changquan (Women)
• Nanquan (Men)
• Taijiquan (Women)
• Dao (Men)
• Jian (Women)
• Gun (Men)
• Qiang (Women)

However, the current sets that have been created for these proposed Olympic events are somewhat different from earlier sets used for other competitions like the Asian Games. For example, the Taijiquan set includes several leaping kicks, something that is not normally seen in Taijiquan.

Another modern form of wushu is called sanda (sometimes called sanshou), which is a modern fighting method and sport influenced by both traditional Chinese boxing and wrestling methods and methods of other countries. Sanda appears much like kickboxing or Muay Thai, but includes many more throwing techniques. Sanda fighting competitions are often held alongside taolu or form competitions.

Traditional Wushu

The term "Traditional Wushu" refers to every other style and school of Wushu not included in the Contemporary Wushu list above. Traditional routines are also used in competition in events separate from the compulsory and individual routine events, especially in China. The routines used are often new, modernized recompilations of traditional styles. Some of the more commonly seen styles include:

• Xingyiquan (形意拳) - Shape-Intent Fist
• Baguazhang (八卦掌) - Eight-Trigrams Palm
• Bajiquan (八極拳) - Eight Extremes Fist
• Fanziquan (翻子拳) - Overturning Fist
• Chuojiao (戳腳) - Poking Feet
• Tongbeiquan (通背拳) - Through-the-Back Fist
• Piguaquan (劈掛拳) - Chop-Hitch Fist
• Chaquan (查拳) - Cha Fist
• Huaquan (華拳) - Hua Fist
• Paoquan (炮拳) - Cannon Fist
• Houquan (猴拳) - Monkey Fist
• Tanglangquan (螳螂拳) - Praying Mantis Fist
• Ditangquan (地躺拳) - Ground-Prone Fist
• Zuijiuquan (醉酒拳) - Drunken Fist
• Yingzhaoquan (鷹爪拳) - Eagle Claw Fist
• Shequan (蛇拳) - Snake Fist

Similarly, there is also a traditional weapons category, which often includes the following:

• Changsuijian (長穗劍) - Long-Tasseled Sword
• Shuangshoujian (雙手劍) - Two-Handed Sword
• Jiujiebian (九節鞭) - Nine Section Whip
• Sanjiegun (三節棍) - Three Section Staff
• Shengbiao (繩鏢) - Rope Dart
• Dadao (大刀) - Great Sword
• Pudao (撲刀) - Pu Sword
• Emeici (峨嵋刺) - Emei Daggers
• Shuangdao (雙刀) - Double Broadsword
• Shuangjian (雙劍) - Double Sword
• Shuangbian (雙鞭) - Double Nine Section Whips
• Shuanggou (雙鈎) - Double Hooksword

Many more weapons and styles exist apart from those mentioned above; in total, the whole of Wushu contains probably over one hundred different minor or major styles.

Famous Wushu Practicioners

Probably the two most famous Wushu practicioners in the world are Jet Li (李連杰) and Jackie Chan. Jet Li started Wushu as a competition sport, and gained fame as a five-time national champion of China; he is now a famous movie star who uses his wushu skills onscreen. Many of his old teammates have also appeared onscreen with him, especially in his older movies. Jackie Chan never practiced wushu as a competitive sport; he was a Beijing opera performer as a child, and learned his basic wushu skills there. He also became a famous movie star through Hong Kong-produced kung fu movies. As with Jet Li, several of his fellow practicioners have gained fame on-screen as wushu performers, including actor Samo Hung.