Kwonbup
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Kwonbup | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Korean name | |
| Hangul: |
권법
|
| Hanja: |
拳法
|
| Revised Romanization: | Gweon Bub |
| McCune-Reischauer: | Kwŏn Bup |
Kwon Bup means fist fighting method. The earliest surviving written reference to kwon bup is found in the Muyedobotongji, which has extensive documentation on the techniques and history of kwon bup. According to this text, kwon bup was impractical for large scale combat on the battlefield, but was taught as an introduction to the martial arts. Soldiers learned kwon bup prior to learning more complex weapons arts to master footwork and body control. It was also taught as a method of personal self-defense for Chosun warriors.
Quan fa is a generic term used for open handed Chinese martial arts. The hanja for quan fa and kwon bup are the same. The chapter in the muyedobotongji dealing with kwon bup was inspired by Chinese writings describing quan fa-techniques. It was the Chinese general Qi Jiguang who said that empty-handed fighting methods were impractical on the battlefield.
These days the term kwon bup is used in many Korean martial arts as a reference to their empty-handed curriculum.
