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Kung Fu Tea

Martial Arts History, Wing Chun and Chinese Martial Studies.

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Ip Man

The Wing Chun Jo Fen: Norms and the Creation of a Southern Chinese Martial Arts Community.

  ***I am happy to report that I am making good progress on my current writing project.  But it is still an ongoing task, and one that consumed much of my weekend.  As such our post for this Monday is... Continue Reading →

Bruce Lee, Globalization and the Case of Wing Chun: Why do Some Chinese Martial Arts Grow?

Introduction: Wing Chun and the Haters You do not have to be involved with the Chinese martial arts for very long to discover that Wing Chun has the potential to be a highly polarizing topic of conversation.  Those within in... Continue Reading →

An Updated and Revised Social History of the Hudiedao (Butterfly Swords)

  In January of 2013 I posted an essay titled "A Social and Visual History of the Hudiedao (Butterfly Sword) in the Southern Chinese Martial Arts." As a student of Wing Chun I have always been fascinated by these weapons, and... Continue Reading →

Yim Wing Chun and Gender: the Stories of Ip Man and Yuen Woo Ping in a Comparative Perspective

Why Talk About Gender in the Chinese Martial Arts? In my years of teaching I have noticed that any discussion of “gender” will usually elicit great interest from a certain percentage of my students, while you can literally watch the... Continue Reading →

Ip Man and the Prostitute: Female Sexuality as a Weapon in Traditional Chinese Martial Culture

  Introduction: Masculinity as a Core Value in the Traditional Southern Martial Arts. One of the few facts that everyone seems to “know” about Wing Chun is that the art was created by a female.  Whether this is actually true... Continue Reading →

A Brief History of Nostalgia and the Future of the Martial Arts

    That Special Time of Year It must be that time of year again.  December is the season in which Disney unleashes a new Star Wars movie on an eager public, complete with a weaponized marketing campaign. Sitting in... Continue Reading →

Ip Man and the Roots of Wing Chun’s “Multiple Attacker” Principle, Part 2

Introduction and Review This is the second part of an extended article on Ip Man's career in law enforcement, and the subsequent emphasis on "ambush" and "multiple attacker" scenarios that later developed in his lineage of Wing Chun.  See here... Continue Reading →

Ip Man and the Roots of Wing Chun’s “Multiple Attacker” Principle, Part 1

Law Enforcement and the Martial Arts in Republican China The intersection between law enforcement and the development of the modern Chinese martial arts is a fascinating topic that deserves a lot more attention than it normally gets.  In many ways... Continue Reading →

Lives of Chinese Martial Artists (3): Chan Wah Shun and the Creation of Wing Chun

Chan Wah Shun and his Place in the Modern Wing Chun Community One of the biggest problems in researching the history of the martial arts is the martial artists themselves.  They love their styles (or the businesses that they support)... Continue Reading →

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