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Martial Arts History, Wing Chun and Chinese Martial Studies.

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Martial Arts Studies

Recovering Alfred Lister: A Forgotten Observer of the Southern Chinese Martial Arts (Part I)

    ***While never discussed within the Chinese martial studies literature, Alfred Lister may have been the single most important western observer of the Chinese martial arts in the second half of the 19th century.  Over a period of four... Continue Reading →

Pilgrimage, Legitimacy and the Shape of the Global Martial Arts Community

    Introduction   I recently stumbled across a 1930s English language newspaper, printed by some office within the Japanese government, designed to promote American tourism.  Leafing through its pages I discovered a glowing article about recent events at the... Continue Reading →

Defining Wing Chun by What is “Missing”

      An all too Common Conversation     Last week my Sifu and I were discussing the public conversation that surrounds Wing Chun.   “So this guy was trying to tell me that we have no head movement... Continue Reading →

Taoism in Bits

"Taoism in Bits." A guest post by Paul Bowman [1] ***Xīnnián hǎo.  We are fortunate to have a special guest post this week in honor of the Chinese New Year.  This essay, by Prof. Paul Bowman, will help us to... Continue Reading →

Chinese Martial Arts in the News: January 23rd 2017: Global Shaolin, MMA and the Endangered Southern Mantis

  Welcome to “Chinese Martial Arts in the News.”  This is a semi-regular feature here at Kung Fu Tea in which we review media stories that mention or affect the traditional fighting arts.  In addition to discussing important events, this... Continue Reading →

Historic Martial Arts Manuals and the Limits of Authenticity

        Situating the Martial Culture of Shii-cho   All of the Jedi I know speak with an accent.  A particularly keen observer might notice them as they walk into the Central Martial Arts Academy, shedding their boots... Continue Reading →

Now Available: Winter 2016 Issue of Martial Arts Studies

    We are happy to announce that the Winter 2016 Issue of Martial Arts Studies is now available, free of charge, to any reader or institution.  This open source, peer reviewed, interdisciplinary journal is an imprint of Cardiff University... Continue Reading →

Doing Research (9): The Perils and Pitfalls of Performance Ethnography in the Martial Arts

    Introduction We are fortunate to be able to share the following guest post as part of our ongoing series on fieldwork in martial arts studies.  This essay, by D. S. Farrer, outlines a number of issues and pitfalls... Continue Reading →

Through a Lens Darkly (42): Chinese Martial Arts in the University, 1928

      Introduction   At the end of the last class at the “Central Martial Arts Academy” (the location where I am conducing my current research on lightsaber combat and the “hyper-real martial arts”) we all gathered for an... Continue Reading →

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