Kung Fu currently still has a vast number of styles that were developed in the past, all depending on the locations of their schools/monasteries, which is why there are so many diversities in every way.
The large number of its styles, displaying different historical roots and sets of values, beautifully reflect China's human, cultural and physical landscapes.
Kung Fu today
The exact number of Kung Fu styles in existence today is unknown, so although consensus has been reached that there are at least several hundred, it is still disputed.
This is due in part to disagreements over the definition of what a style is and whether styles that have only subtle differences can be classified as distinct.
Various classification schemes, focusing on different aspects of the martial arts, have been developed to bring some order to the confusing patchwork of competing styles and schools.
Geographical, philosophical and religious terms are the most used. For example, geographical classification distinguishes Kung Fu styles according to whether they are north or south of the Yangtze River (northern and southern styles).
On the other hand, the philosophical classification deals with Qi (the flow of internal energy) and whether a style is classified as "internal" or "external" will depend on whether it is intended to tame Qi internally or externally.
Finally, the religious classification groups the styles according to which they are most influenced by Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism.
In this article, we will provide an overview of some of the most popular and practiced types of Kung Fu.
Shaolin Kung Fu
It is rooted deep in the past, having originated 1500 years ago in the Shaolin monastery, is one of the most sophisticated and identifiable styles of Kung Fu today, and is inextricably linked to the teachings of Chen or Zen Buddhism.
In popular culture, Shaolin Kung Fu is primarily represented through the itinerant exploits of Shaolin monks.
An external Kung Fu style that adopts a wide range of self-defense attack techniques, emphasizing wide stances, kicks, and open and closed hand strikes.
It is taught through forms - sets of postures and movements - and has more than a thousand forms, which is why Shaolin Kung Fu is considered the most complex style of Kung Fu.
Due to this diversity and abundance of training methods and forms, many sub-styles have developed.
wing chun
The Wing Chun style was born in southern China, about three hundred years ago, and its founders are two women: Ng Mui and Yim Wing Chun, Ng Mui was an excellent Kung Fu master and a Shaolin nun who escaped the destruction of the monastery of Shaolin in the seventeenth century.
Yim Wing Chun was a tofu vendor who was also his student and was known for using the art of Kung Fu to extricate herself from an unhappy marriage with an abusive husband.
Of the hundreds of Kung Fu styles in existence, Wing Chun is the only style named after a woman.
Like most southern styles, Wing Chun primarily uses the upper body and focuses on hand-to-hand combat.
His agile and quick footwork in a tight space, coupled with quick punches, are the hallmarks of the Wing Chun Kung Fu style.
To eliminate the opponent's force, Wing Chun uses body positioning, parrying and parrying.
Chi Sau, which teaches the importance of close combat alignment, intuition, and quick responses, is an integral part of Wing Chun training.
An intriguing fact is that Wing Chun was also the first style of Kung Fu taught by Bruce Lee, by the famous master Ip Man.
Tai Chi
Tai Chi is without a doubt the most popular Kung Fu style today and has millions of followers all over the world.
But paradoxically, until a hundred years ago, Tai Chi was unknown in China.
However, Tai Chi is said to have been created by the Taoist hermit Zhang Sanfeng in the 12th century and later passed down to the Chen family, and was kept secret by their masters until the 19th century.
Tai Chi belongs to the internal styles of Kung. Fu and incorporates into his practice the Taoist concepts of complementary duality -also known as yin-yang-, Chinese medicine and Qi.
Known for its iconic, slow, coordinated movements, emphasis on breath and awareness, most people who practice Tai Chi today for its health benefits, ranging from fitness to increased longevity .
Tai Chi also places special importance on softness and suppleness: the Tai Chi master is expected not to combat violence with violent means.
Rather, it takes an approach that complements and mirrors the attacker's moves, until the attacker's forces are exhausted.
Last but not least, Tai Chi has five main sub-styles, all of which are named after the family of origin.
For example, the Chen family style is the oldest and most famous, and the Yang family style is another popular one.
The northern praying mantis
Many Kung Fu styles derived their "identity" from emulating particular movements of animal movements.
Of these, the northern mantis, whose roots go back to the Ming dynasty, and the martial artist Wang Lang certainly hold a special place, due to their distinctive movements.
A representative movement is, for example, the "praying mantis hook", a technique in which a person joins between one and three fingers in a movement that resembles the fast and powerful blow of a whip.
This hook can be essential to block and deflect the opponent's force or to attack the vulnerable areas of the opponent, which in turn can be especially painful.
The northern praying mantis is praised for the way its movements occur quickly and in sequential continuity.
Along with his arms and wrists, punches and elbows and knees, his compound footwork, which draws heavily from the Monkey style, offers a unique and wholesome aesthetic that melds style with power and efficiency.
Baguazhang
Along with Tai Chi and Xing Yi Quan, Baguazhang is one of the main internal styles of Kung Fu, also known as the Eight Trigrams Palm, the style was brought to life by Dong Haichuan in the first half of the 19th century.
Like Tai Chi, Baguazhang is heavily influenced by Taoist philosophy and its notion of reality.
The style is also characterized by slow, flowing movements, although its techniques are considerably different.
Circular footwork - or walking in circles - forms the basis of the Baguazhang Kung Fu style; everything from there.
This footwork is especially important for evasive moves, and its mastery allows practitioners to engage multiple opponents simultaneously.
Additionally, Baguazhang has developed an astonishing repertoire of techniques, typically utilizing fists, elbows, palms, kicks, locks, and throws, as well as a wide variety of weapons.
Staghorn knives (or crescent knives) are more closely related to the style.
Xingyiquan
The triumvirate of internal styles that includes Tai Chi and Baguazhang is the Xingyiquan style, the oldest of the three.
At first glance, the Xingyiquan style is special in that it defies the conventional features of internal styles, and yet it is classified as such.
With its small number of direct and rudimentary techniques with simple, linear and convincing strikes, Xingyiquan emulates the movement of the spear during combat.
Aggressive and direct, Xingyiquan typically uses five moves to fight from a specific position, to quickly overpower the opponent and limit the number of exchanges between the two parties involved.
This can only be achieved through a strong core, precise body alignment and muscle relaxation.
Xingyiquan's main strength, and the reason it is considered one of the main internal styles of Kung Fu, is its emphasis on training the mind on how to control the flow of energy emanating from the body and how to harness its fierce potential and spirit. .
San Ti, or the three trinity stance, is central to Xingyiquan training, harnessing internal energy and enabling the "five moves" in combat.
Bajiquan
Also known as "eight-pointed fist", it is a style of Kung Fu originating in Hebei province, its forceful and robust elbow strikes, the way its fists and arms are directed forward while striking, and the use of the shoulders they make his sharp, short-range strikes especially recognizable.
Bajiquan is also known as "the bodyguard style" because a significant number of bodyguards in China have been trained to practice it.
The most famous of them were Huo Diange, the bodyguard of the last emperor, and Liu Yunqiao, the one of Chiang Kai Shek, the main adversary of Mao Tse-Tung.
Bajiquan's main strength lies not in the aesthetics of coordinating his movements, but rather in the way his fleeting kick-kick-kick aims to defeat the opponent, while being in Bajiquan is one of the most useful and practical.
Styles, especially in close combat, as he employs the master's limbs in an impressive number of techniques including elbows, knees, shoulders, hip strikes, and strikes.
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