Hung Ga 洪家,
Hung Kuen 洪拳, or
Hung Ga Kuen 洪家拳 is a southern Chinese martial art associated with the
ChineseThe term Chinese people may refer to any of the following:*People who reside in and hold citizenship of the People's Republic of China or the Republic of China . This definition stems from a legal perspective...
folk hero
Wong Fei HungWong Fei Hung or Hwang Fei Hung was a martial artist, a medical doctor of traditional Chinese medicine, and revolutionary who became a Chinese folk hero and the subject of numerous television series and films....
, who was a master of Hung Ga.
History
According to legend, Hung Ga was named after
Hung Hei-GunHung Hei-Kwun , born Huadu, Guangdong, China, was the founder of Hung Gar Kung Fu.-Overview:Hei-Kwun was originally named Jyu and was a tea merchant. He escaped to the Southern Fujian Shaolin Temple after he had an argument with a few upper class Manchurians during the Qing Dynasty when the Manchus...
, who learned martial arts from Jee Sin, a
ChanZen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism, translated from the Chinese word Chán. This word is in turn derived from the Sanskrit dhyāna, which means "meditation" ....
(Zen) master at the Southern Shaolin Temple. Jee Sin (ak Gee Sum Sim See) was also the master of four other students, namely Choy Gau Lee, Mok Da Si, Lau Sam-Ngan and Li Yao San. These five martial artists later became the founders of the five major family styles of Southern Chinese martial arts: (Hung Ga,
Choy GarChoy Gar is a Chinese martial art deriving its name from Choy Gau Lee and is one of the five main family styles of Kung Fu in Southern China...
,
Mok GarMok Gar is one of the five major family styles of Southern Chinese martial arts. It was developed by a Shaolin monk named Monk Mo Ta Shi as an inheritance of the Southern Shaolin Fist in Kwantung province in China....
,
Li GarThe Li or Lee family Kung Fu 李家功夫 is commonly known as one of the five famous family styles of Southern Chinese martial arts.- Li Sou :The Li family is originally from Lanzhou in the Gansu province of China....
and
Lau GarLau Gar ; is known as a southern Chinese martial art.-History:According to legend Lau Sam-Ngan learned martial arts from Jee Sin, a Chan master at the Southern Shaolin Temple....
).
The temple where they trained had become a refuge for opponents of the
Qing DynastyThe Qing Dynasty , also known as the Manchu Dynasty, was the last ruling dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912...
, who used it as a base for their activities, and was soon destroyed by Qing forces. Hung, a tea merchant by trade, eventually left his home in
Fujian' is a province on the southeast coast of China. Fujian borders Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, and Guangdong to the south. Taiwan lies to the east, across the Taiwan Strait...
for
GuangdongGuangdong is a province on the southern coast of People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
, bringing the art with him.
Because the history of the
Chinese martial artsChinese martial arts, sometimes referred to by the Mandarin Chinese term wushu and popularly as kung fu , consist of a number of fighting styles that were developed over the centuries. Those fighting styles can be classified according to common themes that are identified as "families" , "sects" ...
was historically transmitted orally rather than by text, much of the early history of Hung Ga will probably never be either clarified or corroborated by written documentation.
The character "hung" (洪) was used in the reign name of the
emperorThe Hongwu Emperor , known variably by his given name Zhu Yuanzhang and by the temple name Taizu of the Ming was the founder and first emperor of the Ming Dynasty of China...
who overthrew the Mongol
Yuan DynastyThe Yuan Dynasty , or Great Yuan Empire was both the continuation of the Mongol Empire and the Mongol founded historical state in Mongolia and China, lasting officially from 1271 to 1368. Although the dynasty was established by Kublai Khan, he had his grandfather Genghis Khan placed on the...
to establish the
Han ChineseHan Chinese are an ethnic group native to China and, by most modern definitions, the largest single ethnic group in the world.Han Chinese constitute about 92 percent of the population of the People's Republic of China , 98 percent of the population of the Republic of China , 75 percent of the...
Ming DynastyThe Ming Dynasty , or Empire of the Great Ming , was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history," was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...
, opponents of the
ManchuThe Manchu people are a Tungusic people who originated in Manchuria . During their rise in the seventeenth century, with the help of Ming rebels , they conquered the Ming Dynasty and founded the Qing Dynasty, which ruled China until the Xinhai Revolution of 1911, which established a...
Qing DynastyThe Qing Dynasty , also known as the Manchu Dynasty, was the last ruling dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912...
made frequent use of the character in their imagery. (Ironically, Luk Ah-Choi was the son of a Manchu stationed in Guangdong.)
Hung Hei-Gun is itself an assumed name intended to honor that first Ming Emperor. Anti-Qing rebels named the most far reaching of the secret societies they formed the "Hung Mun" (洪門).
The Hung Mun claimed to be founded by survivors of the destruction of the Shaolin Temple, and the martial arts its members practiced came to be called "Hung Ga" and "Hung Kuen."
Hung Ga Style
The hallmarks of Hung Ga are deep low stances, notably its "sei ping ma"
horse stanceHorse stance, also called "mǎbù" in Chinese, in Japanese, and "kuda kuda" in Indonesian, is an important posture in martial arts and takes its name from the position assumed when riding a horse...
, and strong hand techniques, notably the bridge hand and the versatile tiger claw.
The student traditionally spends anywhere from months to three years in stance training, often sitting only in horse stance between a half-hour to several hours at one time, before learning any forms. Each form then might take a year or so to learn, with weapons learned last. However, in modernity, this mode of instruction is deemed economically unfeasible and impractical for students, who have other concerns beyond practicing kung fu.
Hung Ga is sometimes mis-characterized as solely external; that is, reliant on brute physical force rather than the cultivation of
qiIn traditional Chinese culture, qi is an active principle forming part of any living thing....
; even though the student advances progressively towards an internal focus.
The Hung Ga of Wong Fei-Hung (黃飛鴻)
Wong Fei Hung is visibly the most famous Hung Ga practitioner of modern times. As such his branch/lineage has received the most attention and as such recorded in various documents.
The Original Hung Ga curriculum that Wong Fei-Hung learned from his father comprised the sets :
- Single Bow Fist (單弓拳),
- Double Bow Fist (雙弓拳),
- Tiger Taming Fist (伏虎拳),
- Tiger Fist (.虎拳),
- Black Tiger Fist (黑虎拳)
- Mother & Son Butterfly Swords (子母雙刀),
- Fifth Brother Eight Trigram Pole (五郎八卦棍),
Wong distilled his father's empty-hand material along with the material he learned from other masters into the "pillars" of Hung Ga, four empty-hand routines that constitute the core of the Wong Fei-Hung lineage:
"工" Character Taming the Tiger Fist 工字伏虎拳
pinyinPinyin , or more formally Hanyu Pinyin , is currently the most commonly used romanization system for Standard Mandarin. Hanyu means the Chinese language, and pinyin means "phonetics", or more literally, "spelling sound" or "spelled sound"...
: gōng zì fú hǔ quán; Yale Cantonese: gung ji fuk fu keun
- The long routine Taming the Tiger trains the student in the basic techniques of Hung Ga while building endurance. It is said to go at least as far back as Jee Sin, who is said to have taught Taming the Tiger—or at least an early version of it—to both Hung Hei-Gun and Luk Ah-Choi.
- The "工" Character Tiger Taming Fist is so called because its footwork traces a path resembling the character "工".
Tiger Crane Paired Form Fist 虎鶴雙形拳
pinyinPinyin , or more formally Hanyu Pinyin , is currently the most commonly used romanization system for Standard Mandarin. Hanyu means the Chinese language, and pinyin means "phonetics", or more literally, "spelling sound" or "spelled sound"...
: hǔ hè shuāng xíng quán; Yale Cantonese: fu hok seung ying keun
- Tiger Crane builds on Taming the Tiger, adding "vocabulary" to the Hung Ga practitioner's repertoire. Wong Fei-Hung choreographed the version of Tiger Crane handed down in the lineages that descend from him. He is said to have added to Tiger Crane the bridge hand techniques and rooting of the master Tit Kiu Saam as well as long arm techniques, attributed variously to the Fat Ga, Lo Hon, and Lama
-Introduction:While today the martial arts known as Lama Pai, Tibetan White Crane, and Hop Gar exist as relatively distinct lineages and/or organizations, all originated with a single figure known as Sing Lung who arrived in Guangdong Province during the Qing Dynasty and taught a martial art then...
styles. Tiger Crane Paired Form routines from outside Wong Fei-Hung Hung Gar still exist.
Five Animal Fist 五形拳/Five Animal Five Element Fist 五形五行拳
pinyinPinyin , or more formally Hanyu Pinyin , is currently the most commonly used romanization system for Standard Mandarin. Hanyu means the Chinese language, and pinyin means "phonetics", or more literally, "spelling sound" or "spelled sound"...
: wǔ xíng quán; Yale Cantonese: ng ying keun/pinyinPinyin , or more formally Hanyu Pinyin , is currently the most commonly used romanization system for Standard Mandarin. Hanyu means the Chinese language, and pinyin means "phonetics", or more literally, "spelling sound" or "spelled sound"...
: wǔ xíng wǔ xíng quán; Yale Cantonese: ng ying ng haang keun
- These routines serve as a bridge between the external force of Tiger Crane and the internal focus of Iron Wire. "Five Animals" (literally "Five Forms") refers to the characteristic Five Animals of the Southern Chinese martial arts: Dragon, Snake, Tiger, Leopard, and Crane. "Five Elements" refers to the five classical Chinese elements: Metal, Wood, Water, Fire and Earth. The Hung Ga Five Animal Fist was choreographed by Wong Fei Hung and expanded by Lam Sai Wing (林世榮), a senior student and teaching assistant of Wong Fei Hung, into the Five Animal Five Element Fist (also called the "Ten Form Fist"). In the Lam Sai Wing branch of Hung Ga, the Five Animal Five Element Fist has largely, but not entirely, superseded the Five Animal Fist, which has become associated with Tang Fong and others who were no longer students when the Five Animal Five Element Fist was created.
Iron Wire Fist 鐵線拳
pinyinPinyin , or more formally Hanyu Pinyin , is currently the most commonly used romanization system for Standard Mandarin. Hanyu means the Chinese language, and pinyin means "phonetics", or more literally, "spelling sound" or "spelled sound"...
: tiě xiàn quán; Yale Cantonese: tit sin kuen
- Iron Wire builds internal power and is attributed to the martial arts master Tit Kiu Saam (鐵橋三). Like Wong Fei Hung's father Wong Kei-Ying, Tit Kiu Saam was one of the Ten Tigers of Canton
The Ten Tigers of Canton or the Ten Tigers of Guangdong were a group of ten of the top Chinese martial arts masters in Guangdong towards the end of the Qing Dynasty . They were reputed to be the best fighters in all of Southern China...
. As a teenager, Wong Fei Hung learned Iron Wire from Lam Fuk-Sing (林福成), a student of Tit Kiu Saam. The Iron Wire form is essentially a combination of qigongQigong is an internal Chinese meditative practice which often uses slow graceful movements and controlled breathing techniques to promote the circulation of qi within the human body, and enhance a practitioner's overall health...
(or meditative breathing) with isometric exercise particularly dynamic tensionDynamic Tension is the system of exercises popularized by Charles Atlas.Dynamic-Tension is a self-resistance exercise method which pits muscle against muscle. The practitioner tenses the muscles of given body part and then moves the body part against the tension as if a heavy weight was being...
although weights were also used in traditional practice in the form of iron ringsIron rings are heavy metal rings used in martial arts for various training purposes. Metal rings have a long history of being used in Yau Kung Mun, Hung Gar, and other styles for weight training, to harden the muscle, skin, or bone, or strengthen the arms and fists.-Types of rings:Many different...
worn on the wrists. If properly practiced it can increase strength considerably and promote a stable root. However as with both most forms of qigong and most forms of isometric exercise it must be practiced regularly or the benefits are quickly lost.
Wong Fei Hung was known for his Fifth Brother
Eight TrigramBāguàzhǎng is one of the major "internal" Chinese martial arts. Bāguà zhǎng literally means "eight trigram palm," referring to the trigrams of the I Ching , one of the canons of Taoism....
PoleThe Chinese word gun refers to a long Chinese staff weapon used in Chinese martial arts. It is known as one of the four major weapons, along with the qiang , dao , and the jian , called in this group "The Grandfather of all Weapons".-Variants:There are various kinds of gun, and they include the...
(五郎八卦棍), which can be found in the curricula of both the Lam Sai Wing and
Tang FungTang Fung 鄧芳 , was a disciple of the Chinese Kung Fu folk hero Wong Fei Hung. His rigid way prompted him to follow and document the Hung Ga Keun teachings of Wong Fei Hung to the letter, thus he was referred to as Old Square Mind for his stubbornness to tradition.-Life:Tang Fung was born in Saam...
branches of Hung Ga, two of the major branches of the Wong Fei-Hung lineage, as can the Spring & Autumn Guandao (春秋大刀), and the Yu Family Tiger Fork (瑤家大扒).
Both branches also train the
broadswordDaois a category of single-edge Chinese swords primarily used for slashing and chopping , often called a broadsword in English translation because some varieties have wide blades...
(刀), the
butterfly swordThe butterfly sword is a short dāo, or single-edged blade, originally from the South of China, though it has seen use in the North.The blade of a butterfly sword is roughly as long as a human forearm, which allows for easy concealment inside sleeves or boots, and allows greater maneuverability...
s (雙刀), the spear (槍), and even the fan (扇), but use different routines to do so.
Mother & Son Butterfly Swords (子母雙刀) can still be found in the curriculum of the Tang Fong branch.
Branches of Hung Kuen
Beyond that, the curricula of different branches of Hung Ga differ tremendously with regard to routines and the selection of weapons, even within the Wong Fei Hung lineage.
Just as those branches that do not descend from Lam Sai Wing do not practice the Five Animal Five Element Fist, those branches that do not descend from Wong Fei Hung sometimes called "old" or "village" Hung Kuen, do not practice the routines he choreographed, nor do the branches that do not descend from Tit Kiu Saam practice Iron Wire.
Conversely, the curricula of some branches have grown through the addition of further routines by creation or acquisition.
Nonetheless, the various branches of the Wong Fei Hung lineage still share the Hung Ga foundation he systematized.
Lacking such a common point of reference, "village" styles of Hung Kuen show even greater variation.
The curriculum that Jee Sin taught Hung Hei-Gun is said to have comprised Tiger style, Luohan style, and Taming the Tiger routine.
Exchanging material with other martial artists allowed Hung to develop or acquire Tiger Crane Paired Form routine, a combination animal routine, Southern Flower Fist, and several weapons.
According to Hung Ga tradition, the martial arts that Jee Sin originally taught Hung Hei Gun were short range and the more active footwork, wider stances, and long range techniques commonly associated with Hung Ga were added later.
It is said to have featured "a two-foot horse," that is, narrow stances, and routines whose footwork typically took up no more than four tiles' worth of space.
Ha Sei Fu Hung Ga 下四虎洪家
The
Ha Sei FuHasayfu is a form of Chinese martial arts, but Hasayfu also literally means Lower Four Tigers, which refers to four counties in a region in the Fujian Province located south of the provincial capital city of Fuzhou. These counties include Fuzhou, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou and Yong'an; in short, the...
(下四虎) is said to fit this description, though the implied link to the legendary Jee Sin is more speculative than most because of its poorly documented genealogy.
Ha Sei Fu Hung Ga of Leung Wah Chew is a Five Animal style with a separate routine for each animal.
Other Branches of Ha Sei Fu Hung Ga also contain combined animal sets like tiger & Crane, Dragon & Leopard, etc.
Five-Pattern Hung Kuen 五形洪拳
Like Ha Sei Fu Hung Ga, the Ng Ying Hung Kuen (五形洪拳) fits the description of Jee Sin's martial arts, but traces its ancestry to
Ng MuiNg Mui is said to have been one of the legendary Five Elders — survivors of the destruction of the Shaolin Temple by the Qing Dynasty....
and Miu Hin (苗顯) who, like Jee Sin, were both survivors of the destruction of the Shaolin Monastery.
From Miu Hin, the Five-Pattern Hung Kuen passed to his daughter Miu Tsui Fa (苗筴花), and from his daughter to his grandson
Fong Sai-YukFong Sai-yuk is a fictional Chinese martial artist and folk hero. He is first introduced in Wuxia stories from the Qing Dynasty such as Wan Nian Qing. He is also featured in several forms of media, of which the most notable is the 1993 film Fong Sai-yuk.-Early life:Fong Sai-yuk is a native of...
(方世玉), both Chinese folk heroes like Jee Sin, Ng Mui, and their forebear Miu Hin.
Yuen Yik Kai's Books introduced this branch to the Western/European venue. while conventionally translated as "Five-Pattern Hung Fist" rather than "Five Animal Hung Fist", it is a Five Animal style, one with a single routine for all Five Animals but also has other sets as well.
Tiger Crane Paired Form 虎鶴雙形
The Tiger-Crane Combination style has been found in almost every Hung Style. While not as long as the Wong Fei Hung version that is typically seen as containing 108 movements/techniques.
Ang Lian-Huat attributes the art to Hung Hei Gun's combination of the Tiger style he learned from Jee Sin with the Crane style he learned from his wife, whose name is given in Hokkien as Tee Eng-Choon.
Like other martial arts that trace their origins to
Fujian' is a province on the southeast coast of China. Fujian borders Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, and Guangdong to the south. Taiwan lies to the east, across the Taiwan Strait...
(e.g. Fujian White Crane,
Five AncestorsFive Ancestors Fist is a Southern Chinese martial art that consists of techniques from five different styles:* the breathing methods and iron body of Da mo * the posture and dynamic power of Luohan...
), this style uses San Chian as its foundation.
Wong Kiew Kit trace their version of The Tiger Crane routine not to Hung Hei Gun or Luk Ah Choi but to their senior classmate Harng Yein.
The dissemination of Hung Kuen
The dissemination of Hung Kuen in Southern China, and its
GuangdongGuangdong is a province on the southern coast of People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
and
Fujian' is a province on the southeast coast of China. Fujian borders Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, and Guangdong to the south. Taiwan lies to the east, across the Taiwan Strait...
Provinces in particular, is due to the concentration of anti-Qing activity there. The Hung Mun began life in the 1760s as the Heaven and Earth Society, whose founders came from the
prefecturePrefecture, in the context of China, is used to refer to several unrelated political divisions in both ancient and modern China.In a modern context, prefecture-level is used to refer to a level of division between the province and county levels...
of
ZhangzhouZhangzhou is a prefecture-level city in southern Fujian province, People's Republic of China. Located on the banks of the Xi River, Zhangzhou borders the cities of Xiamen and Quanzhou to the northeast, Longyan City to the northwest and the province of Guangdong to the southwest.In older English...
in
Fujian' is a province on the southeast coast of China. Fujian borders Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, and Guangdong to the south. Taiwan lies to the east, across the Taiwan Strait...
Province, on its border with
GuangdongGuangdong is a province on the southern coast of People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
, where one of its founders organized a precursor to the
Heaven and Earth SocietyThe Tiandihui is a fraternal organization that originated in China...
in
HuizhouHuizhou is a prefecture-level city in Guangdong province, People's Republic of China. Part of the Pearl River Delta, Huizhou borders the provincial capital of Guangzhou to the west, Shaoguan to the north, Heyuan to the northeast, Shanwei to the east, Shenzhen and Dongguan to the southwest, and...
.
GuangdongGuangdong is a province on the southern coast of People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
and
Fujian' is a province on the southeast coast of China. Fujian borders Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, and Guangdong to the south. Taiwan lies to the east, across the Taiwan Strait...
remained a stronghold of sympathizers and recruits for the Hung Mun even as it spread elsewhere in the decades that followed. Though the members of the Hung Clan almost certainly practiced a variety of martial arts styles, the composition of its membership meant that it was the characteristics of Fujianese and Cantonese martial arts that came to be associated with the names "Hung Kuen" and "Hung Gar." Regardless of their differences, the Hung Kuen lineages of
Wong Fei-HungWong Fei Hung or Hwang Fei Hung was a martial artist, a medical doctor of traditional Chinese medicine, and revolutionary who became a Chinese folk hero and the subject of numerous television series and films....
,
Lam Sai WingLam Sai-wing , was a student of the legendary Cantonese martial artist, healer and folk hero Wong Fei Hung.-Early life:Lam Sai-wing was born in Nanhai district, Guangdong...
, Yuen Yik-Kai, Leung Wah-Chew, and Zhang Ke-Zhi (張克治) nonetheless all trace their origins to this area and this time period, are all Five Animal styles, and all claim Shaolin origins. Northern Hung Kuen (洪拳), by contrast, is not a Five Animal style, dates to the 13th century, and claims to come unequivocally from the Shaolin Temple in Henan. (The oral histories of Southern styles that claim to come from Shaolin can be unclear with regard to whether they are referring to the original temple in Henan or to a supposed southern temple.) Cantonese and Fujianese are also predominant among Overseas Chinese, accounting for the widespread dissemination of Hung Kuen outside of China. With the exception of Frank Yee (余志偉; Yee Chi-Wai) of the
Tang FungTang Fung 鄧芳 , was a disciple of the Chinese Kung Fu folk hero Wong Fei Hung. His rigid way prompted him to follow and document the Hung Ga Keun teachings of Wong Fei Hung to the letter, thus he was referred to as Old Square Mind for his stubbornness to tradition.-Life:Tang Fung was born in Saam...
branch in New York City, Cheung Shu-Pui of
Tang FungTang Fung 鄧芳 , was a disciple of the Chinese Kung Fu folk hero Wong Fei Hung. His rigid way prompted him to follow and document the Hung Ga Keun teachings of Wong Fei Hung to the letter, thus he was referred to as Old Square Mind for his stubbornness to tradition.-Life:Tang Fung was born in Saam...
line in Philadelphia, Francisco Rivera of the
Tang FungTang Fung 鄧芳 , was a disciple of the Chinese Kung Fu folk hero Wong Fei Hung. His rigid way prompted him to follow and document the Hung Ga Keun teachings of Wong Fei Hung to the letter, thus he was referred to as Old Square Mind for his stubbornness to tradition.-Life:Tang Fung was born in Saam...
line in New Mexico, as well as a few other
Tang FungTang Fung 鄧芳 , was a disciple of the Chinese Kung Fu folk hero Wong Fei Hung. His rigid way prompted him to follow and document the Hung Ga Keun teachings of Wong Fei Hung to the letter, thus he was referred to as Old Square Mind for his stubbornness to tradition.-Life:Tang Fung was born in Saam...
branch Sifus, the most numerous teachers of Hung Ga in the United States belong to the Lam Sai Wing branch.
There are many Hung Gar lineages today spreading from Lau Cham (Lau Jaam, 劉湛), Lam Jo (the nephew and chosen successor of Lam Sai Wing), Wong Lei, Chan Hon Chung, Chiu Kau and Tang Hin Choi. Chiu Kau (趙教)and his wife Shiu Ying, born Wong Sou Nang (黃邵英), learned Hung Gar from Wong Sai Wing, a top student of Wong Fei Hung, and later from Lam Sai Wing. They in turn taught their sons Chiu Wai (趙威) of Calgary, Alberta, Canada, and
Chiu Chi LingChiu Chi Ling is an actor that appears mostly in Kung Fu style movies produced in Hong Kong. He also teaches Hung Gar Kung Fu at Chiu Chi Ling Hung Gar Kung Fu Association, a San Francisco-based martial arts school he founded, and at the old Chiu Family Kwoon in Hong Kong...
(趙志淩) of Alameda, California.
Kwong-Wing LamKwong Wing Lam is known in the Traditional Chinese Martial Arts community as a teacher of Southern Shaolin , Northern Shaolin , Yang style Tai Chi Chuan and Sun style Tai Chi Chuan Kung Fu styles; he is also known for his expertise in the arts of Iron Palm, Iron Body Qigong and Bagua.-Life of...
of Sunnyvale, California, studied with Chiu Kau, Chiu Wai and also learned the
Ha Say FuHasayfu is a form of Chinese martial arts, but Hasayfu also literally means Lower Four Tigers, which refers to four counties in a region in the Fujian Province located south of the provincial capital city of Fuzhou. These counties include Fuzhou, Quanzhou, Zhangzhou and Yong'an; in short, the...
style from Leung Wah-Chew. The Chiu Wai lineage continues to be taught in Hong Kong by two of his long-time students Chiu Wah (趙華) and Gam Bok Yin (金博賢). Buck Sam Kong (江北山) of Hawaii/Los Angeles, Victor Arechiga (维克多) of Sinaloa Mexico, Juan Diego Lugo (胡安 迭戈) from Monterrey in North zone of Mexico, Kwong-Wing Lam of Sunnyvale and Y.C. Wong (黃耀楨) of San Francisco all learned from Lam Cho (林祖) as well. In Mexico south Javier Carrera and Virgilio Sanchez who was learning directly from Chang Hon Chung. Philip Ng Ngai Foon in Boston and more later in Garland Texas, learned Hung Ga From Lee Yat Ming. Calvin Chin of Newton Highlands, Massachusetts learned from a student of Lam Cho, Kwong Tit-Fu. Also, Woo Ping Chiu (Winchell Woo) in Boston, MA, a student of Tang Kwok Wah (from the Lam Cho school) runs a Hung Ga school in Chinatown and teaches there and continues the traditions of the art. In another lineage, John Leong (梁崇) of Seattle learned from Wong Lei (王利). John Leong was also one of the teachers of Tony Brown. Additionally, Li Fan Fung (李帆風) who recently died in November 2008 at the age of 90 learned Hung Ga from one of Wong Fei Hung's students, Lau Man Hok. Li Fan Fung was a four time gold medalist in the All China Wushu competition in 1983, for his Tiger Crane Double Pair Shape Form, Shaolin Long Staff, Lu Bu Ji, and Double Daggers. Sifu Li is survived by a number of his students in Boston, MA
See also
- The five major family styles of southern Chinese martial arts
- Jee Sin Sim See
Jee Sin Sim See is said to have been one of the legendary Five Elders, survivors of the destruction of the Shaolin Temple by the Qing Dynasty ....
- Wong Kei-Ying
- Wong Fei-Hung
- Lam Sai Wing
Lam Sai-wing , was a student of the legendary Cantonese martial artist, healer and folk hero Wong Fei Hung.-Early life:Lam Sai-wing was born in Nanhai district, Guangdong...
- Tang Fung
Tang Fung 鄧芳 , was a disciple of the Chinese Kung Fu folk hero Wong Fei Hung. His rigid way prompted him to follow and document the Hung Ga Keun teachings of Wong Fei Hung to the letter, thus he was referred to as Old Square Mind for his stubbornness to tradition.-Life:Tang Fung was born in Saam...
- Fu Jow Pai - Tiger Claw System
External links