Kwans
Encyclopedia
This article is about martial arts. For the Finnish music band see Kwan
Kwan (Hanja
: 館; ) in Korean
literally means building or hall, but when used in martial arts it can also refer to a school or clan of martial artists who follow the same style and/or leader. This article is about the different taekwondo
kwans.
The four later Kwans are considered annex kwans, since they all are lines from one of the 5 earlier kwans.
Kwan (band)
Kwan is a hip hop/pop music group from Helsinki, Finland. Most visible members of the band are the two vocalists Mariko and Tidjan...
Kwan (Hanja
Hanja
Hanja is the Korean name for the Chinese characters hanzi. More specifically, it refers to those Chinese characters borrowed from Chinese and incorporated into the Korean language with Korean pronunciation...
: 館; ) in Korean
Korean language
Korean is the official language of the country Korea, in both South and North. It is also one of the two official languages in the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in People's Republic of China. There are about 78 million Korean speakers worldwide. In the 15th century, a national writing...
literally means building or hall, but when used in martial arts it can also refer to a school or clan of martial artists who follow the same style and/or leader. This article is about the different taekwondo
Taekwondo
Taekwondo is a Korean martial art and the national sport of South Korea. In Korean, tae means "to strike or break with foot"; kwon means "to strike or break with fist"; and do means "way", "method", or "path"...
kwans.
The five original Taekwondo kwans
- Song Moo KwanSong Moo KwanSong Moo Kwan, originally named "Song Do Kwan", is one of the nine original kwans of taekwondo in Korea. Its founder, from 1944, Byung Jick Ro , is one of the highest ranking taekwondo practitioners in the world.- History :...
- founded March 11, 1944 by Ro, Byung Jick, who had studied Shotokan (Song Do Kwan) karate along with Chung Do Kwan founder Lee, Won Kyuk under Gichin Funakoshi in Japan. In the 1960s Ro's son and eventual successor, Ro Hee Sang began studying Hapkido in 1963 and Northern Shaolin Kung Fu in 1967. He (Ro, Hee Sang) subsequently became an instructor to the Korean Army and one of Korea's Taekwondo champions. He trained Karate, Hapkido, Kumdo and Northern Shaolin Kung Fu.
- Chung Do KwanChung Do KwanChung Do Kwan, created by Won Kuk Lee in 1944, is the first of nine schools or kwan teaching what came to be known as taekwondo. This style of Tae Kwon Do is known for its overall power and emphasis on kicks to the head.-Founding:...
- founded in 1944 by Lee, Won Kyuk. He had studied Taekkyon in An Gup Dong(Seoul), He also studied Karate in Okinawa, Kung Fu centers in Henan and Shanghai in China, and other. After liberation of Korea, the Chung Do Kwan had risen to become 2nd biggest Taekwondo organization in Korea.
- Moo Duk KwanMoo Duk KwanMoo Duk Kwan is split into two groups. One is Soo Bahk Do, formerly Tang Soo Do, and earlier Hwa Soo Do. The other is Taekwondo Moo Duk Kwan. Soo Bahk Do was founded by Grand Master Hwang Kee, November 9, 1945...
- founded after 1946 by Hwang Kee. Kee studied Taekkyon, T'ai chi and some types of Kung Fu with Yang Kuk Jin in ChinaChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. Kee claims he learned the philosophy of Okinawan Karate from Gichin Funakoshi's books. His first two attempts at running a school of Hwa Soo Do were unsuccessful. He then trained with Won Kyuk Lee at the Chung Do Kwan, gaining the equivalent of a green belt. Lee claims Kee was his student, but Kee disputes Lee's claim, and acknowledges only Yang Kuk Jin as his teacher. In 1957, Kee made a discovery of Soo Bahk, a true Korean martial art, from Muye Dobo Tongji. Kee developed the Soo Bahk system to be studied through the Moo Duk Kwan. He chose the name Soo Bahk Do, a derivative of Soo Bahk Ki, hand striking technique, and Soo Bahk Hee, hand striking dance, which were detailed in the Muye Dobo Tongji. In 1960, the Korean Soo Bahk Do Association was incorporated and officially registered with the Korean government as the traditional Korean martial art. The following year, the Moo Duk Kwan discipline was recognized internationally for the first time. By 1953 and onward until 1960, the Moo Duk Kwan had risen to become biggest Moo Do organization in Korea, with close to 75% of all martial artists in Korea practicing Tang Soo Do Moo Duk Kwan.
- Kwon BopKwonbupGwonbeop means fist fighting method. The earliest surviving written reference to gwonbeop is found in the Muyedobotongji, which has extensive documentation on the techniques and history of gwonbeop. According to this text, gwonbeop was impractical for large scale combat on the battlefield, but was...
Bu/Chang Moo KwanChang Moo KwanChang Moo Kwan is a Korean martial arts group was founded by Lee Nam Suk and Kim Soon Bae.- History :At the end of World War II, several Kwans wet set up. In the late 1950s, these Kwans united under the name Tae Soo Do...
- founded in 1946 by Yoon, Byung-In, who had studied Chinese Kung Fu (ch'uan-fa) under the guidance of a MongolianMongolsMongols ) are a Central-East Asian ethnic group that lives mainly in the countries of Mongolia, China, and Russia. In China, ethnic Mongols can be found mainly in the central north region of China such as Inner Mongolia...
instructor in ManchuriaManchuriaManchuria is a historical name given to a large geographic region in northeast Asia. Depending on the definition of its extent, Manchuria usually falls entirely within the People's Republic of China, or is sometimes divided between China and Russia. The region is commonly referred to as Northeast...
. Later, Yoon trained karate at university karate club in Japan with Kanken TōyamaKanken ToyamaKanken Tōyama was a Japanese schoolteacher and karate master, who developed the foundation for the Shūdōkan karate style....
. When he trained Karate in Japan, Japanese karate students pursued the Korean student and beat them up. Yoon Byung-in angered from the Japanese karate students, Yoon Byung-in sprung into action using Chuan-fa. He skillfully deflected and evaded the karate students’ strikes and kicks to the point that they gave up and ran back to tell their teacher about what happened. Teacher Kanken TōyamaKanken ToyamaKanken Tōyama was a Japanese schoolteacher and karate master, who developed the foundation for the Shūdōkan karate style....
invited Yoon Byung-in to tell him about the skillful non-karate martial art he used against his students. Yoon Byung-in explained to Toyama about his Chuan-fa education in Manchuria. Toyama appreciated the Chuan-fa background since he (Toyama) had studied Chuan-fa in Taiwan for 7 years, previously. They decided to exchange knowledge; Yoon Byung-in would teach Toyama Kanken Chuan-fa and Toyama Kanken would teach Yoon Byung-in his Shudo-Ryu karate. Yoon later created his art and called as Kwon Bop Kong Soo DoKong Soo DoKong Soo Do is a Korean martial art. Its name is composed of the Korean pronunciation of the Chinese characters for "karate-do". In English it means "empty-hand way". However, it is different from karate-do...
. Unlike other taekwondo kwans, early Chang Moo Kwan was mainly based on ChineseChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
Kung Fu (ch'uan-fa). The early Chang Moo Kwan taught Palgi kwon (which influenced by BājíquánBajíquánBājíquán is a Chinese martial art that features explosive, short-range power and is famous for its elbow strikes. It originated in Hebei Province in Northern China, but is also well-known in other places today, especially Taiwan...
). Yoon went missing during the Korean WarKorean WarThe Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
. His teachings were carried on by his top student Lee Nam Suk, who changed the name of the school to Chang Moo Kwan. 10th Dan Grandmaster Soon Bae Kim is currently the President of Song Moo Kwan and is one of two Kukkiwon 10th Dans in charge of Kukkiwon testing.
- Yun Moo Kwan/JidokwanJidokwanJidokwan is one of the original nine schools of the modern Korean martial arts that became Taekwondo and was founded in what is now South Korea at the end of World War II. Its name translates as "School of Wisdom". The Jidokwan in Korea still exists today. It functions as a social fraternal order...
- founded March 3, 1946 by Chun, Sang Sup, who had studied Shotokan karate with Gichin Funakoshi in Japan, and later called his art Kong Soo Do. he had a very close relationship with Yoon, Byung-In, founder of Kwon Bop Bu. Chun and Yoon would travel to train with other martial artists, sometimes traveling to ManchuriaManchuriaManchuria is a historical name given to a large geographic region in northeast Asia. Depending on the definition of its extent, Manchuria usually falls entirely within the People's Republic of China, or is sometimes divided between China and Russia. The region is commonly referred to as Northeast...
. They trained with each other so much that they became known as brothers. The full name of this kwan was "Chosun Yun Moo Kwan Kong Soo Do Bu" (the Chosun Yun Moo Kwan had been the original Japanese JudoJudois a modern martial art and combat sport created in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano. Its most prominent feature is its competitive element, where the object is to either throw or takedown one's opponent to the ground, immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling maneuver, or force an...
school in Korea for over 30 years previously). Chun went missing during the Korean War; subsequently, this kwan voted to change its name to Jidokwan. After Chun disappeared in Korean War, the original students of Chun voted Master Yon who Trained in Chuan Fa in Manchuria as Jidokwan 1st President.
Later important Taekwondo kwans (post Korean War)
- Han Moo KwanHan Moo KwanHan Moo Kwan was founded in August 1954 by Kyo Yoon Lee and is one of the nine original Kwans that later formed Kukkiwon Taekwondo.Lee was a student at the Chosun Yun Moo Kwan Kwon Bop Bu, learning from its founder, Sang Sup Chun...
- founded in August 1954 by Lee Kyo Yoon as an offshoot of the Yun Moo Kwan/Jidokwan. - Oh Do KwanOh Do KwanOh Do Kwan founded in 1955, was the 6th Kwan to open in Korea.-Meaning:The word Oh can be translated both as 'mine' and 'our', which makes the meaning of Oh Do Kwan 'the school of my way'.-Founding:...
- founded in 1955 by Choi Hong HiChoi Hong HiChoi Hong Hi , also known as General Choi, was a South Korean army general and martial artist who is a controversial figure in the history of the Korean martial art of taekwondo. Choi is widely regarded as the 'Founder of Taekwondo'—most often by International Taekwon-Do Federation organizations...
, Nam Tae HiNam Tae HiNam Tae Hi is a pioneering South Korean master of taekwondo, and is known as the 'Father of Vietnamese Taekwondo.' With H. H. Choi, he co-founded the Oh Do Kwan and led the twelve original masters of taekwondo of the Korea Taekwon-Do Association .-Early life:Nam was born in March 1929 in Seoul,...
, and Han Cha KyoHan Cha KyoHan Cha Kyo was a South Korean master of taekwondo, and one of the twelve original masters of taekwondo of the Korea Taekwon-Do Association. He held the rank of 9th dan in taekwondo. Following a career in the South Korean military, he emigrated to the United States of America in 1971...
as an offshoot of the Chung Do Kwan. - Kang Duk WonKang Duk WonKang Duk Won was one of the original 9 kwans that eventually merged to create the Kukkiwon system. This Kwan was founded in the later 1950s by former students of the YMCA Kwon Bop Bu . These two students of YMCA Kwon Bop Bu founder Byung In Yoon were Hong Jong-Pyo and Chul Hee Park...
- founded in 1956 by Park Chul Hee and Hong Jong Pyo as an offshoot of the Kwon Bop Bu/Chang Moo Kwan. - Jung Do KwanJung Do KwanJung Do Kwan was founded in 1956 by Young Woo Lee, and was the last of the original nine Kwans that formed the Kukkiwon. This is detailed in "A Modern History of Taekwondo" by Kyong Myong Lee and Kang Won Sik ....
- founded in 1956 by Lee Yong Woo (died August, 2006) as an offshoot of the Chung Do Kwan.
The four later Kwans are considered annex kwans, since they all are lines from one of the 5 earlier kwans.