ABOUT TANG SOO DO

Tang Soo Do is a traditional Korean martial art.

The history of Korean martial arts development can be traced back to the period when Korea was divided into three kingdoms: Silla, Baekje and Koguryeo.

Koguryeo was founded in 37 BC in northern Korea. The Silla Dynasty was founded in 57 BC in the southeast peninsula. The third kingdom, Baekje (sometimes written "Paekche") was founded in 18 BC.
Finally, after a long series of wars, the Silla Dynasty united the three kingdoms in 668 AD. During this period, the primitive martial arts (including an art known as Soo Bakh) were very popular as a method of self-defense in warfare. This is evident in the many mural paintings, ruins, and remains, which depict Taekkyeon in those days. Among the three kingdoms, the Silla Dynasty was most famous for its development of martial arts. A corps composed of a group of young aristocrats who were called "Hwa Rang Dan" (or "Hwa Rang Do") was the major force behind the development of the art. These warriors were instrumental in unifying the Korean peninsula under the new Silla Dynasty (668 AD - 935 AD). Many of the early leaders of that dynasty were originally members of the Hwa Rang Dan. Most Korean martial arts trace their spiritual and technical heritage to this group. In fact, the names of some martial arts such as Hwa Soo Do still reflect this origination.

The united Silla Kingdom was ultimately overthrown by a warlord, Wang Kun, in 918 AD. The new kingdom, Koryeo, lasted for 475 years (918 AD - 1392 AD). During the Wang Dynasty, members of the "Hwa Rang Dan" became instead "Gook Sun Dul" or "Poong Wal Dul", where "Dul" is simply the Korean plural form. The title "Gook Sun" or "Poong Wal" was equivalent to modern army general; each could command several hundreds to several thousands private armies to protect the country and the region. This system is claimed to be later adapted by the Japanese and became the Samurai system, but no evidence exists. In 1392, the Yi Dynasty succeeded the Koryeo kingdom. The Yi Dynasty remained intact for 500 years. During the 1000 year period of the Koryeo Kingdom and the Yi Dynasty, what we today know as Taekkyeon was increasingly popular with the military. More importantly however, the art also became very popular with the general public. During this period, Taekkyeon was referred to as Kwon Bop, Tae Kyun, Soo Bahk and other names. The first complete martial arts book was written at this time, the "Mooyae Tobo Tongji". It was written in 1790 and its illustrations show that Taekkyeon had developed into a very sophisticated art of combat. Although it was popular among the public, it was eventually banned by the Yi Dynasty due to fear of rebels. Therefore, the Korean traditional martial arts were taught as one teacher to only one student throughout the teacher's life. During the Japanese occupation, students were forced into training in secret.

During the Japanese occupation of Korea (1910-1945), as symbols of the Japanese way of life in Korea began to open schools of Karate-Do, Ju-Do, Ken-Do. As the Japanese moved deeper into the continent, Karate was adopted and practiced from the philosophical perspective that reflected the traditional Korean martial arts such as Taekkyeon and Soo Bahk as well as traditional Chinese martial arts studied by Koreans in Manchuria and China.

Around the time of the liberation of Korea in 1945, five martial arts schools (kwans) were formed by men who were primarily trained in some form of Karate, but also had exposure to Taekkyeon and Kung Fu. The five prominent kwans (and respective founders) were: Chung Do Kwan (Lee Won Kuk), Ji Do Kwan (Chun Sang Sup), Chang Moo Kwan (Yoon Byung In), Moo Duk Kwan (Hwang Kee), and Song Moo Kwan (Roh Byung Jick). These schools taught what most Americans know as "Korean Karate."

The origin of Tang Soo Do can not be definitively traced to any single person. Lee Won Kuk was one of the first instructors of Tang Soo Do in Korea. Lee Won Kuk had an established dojang in Korea during the Japanese occupation of Korea. This school was called the Chung Do Kwan, or "Blue Wave School". Lee Won Kuk received Dan ranking from Funakoshi Gichin in Japan and have studied Taekkyeon on the street An Gup Dong in Seoul, Korea and Kung Fu in Henan and Shanghai, China.

On May 25, 1953 representatives of the five original kwans (Chung Do Kwan, Song Moo Kwan, Ji Do Kwan, Chang Moo Kwan and Moo Duk Kwan) met in Pusan and formed the Korea Tang Soo Do Association.

Around 1953, shortly after the Korean War, four more annex kwans formed. These 2nd generation kwans and their principle founders were: Oh Do Kwan (Choi Hong Hi and Nam Tae Hi), Han Moo Kwan (Lee Kyo Yoon), Kang Duk Kwan (Park Chul Hee and Hong Jong Pyo) and Jung Do Kwan (Lee Young Woo). In 1955, these arts, at that time called various names by the different schools, were ordered to unify by South Korea's President Syngman Rhee. A governmental body selected a naming committee's submission of "Taekwon-Do" as the name. Both Sun Duk Song and Choi Hong Hi claim to have submitted the name.

Tang Soo Do continues to expand and flourish under numerous federations and organizations. It can be argued that Tang Soo Do is one of the most widely practiced martial arts in the United States, although no official census of martial arts practitioners exists. Due to political in-fighting and splintering, Tang Soo Do is not as unified as Tae Kwon Do.

Tang Soo Do is the Korean pronunciation of the Chinese characters. Tang Soo Do literally means "Chinese hand way". The same characters are pronounced Karate-Do in Japanese. The first character (which initially referred to China) was later changed by Funakoshi Gichin, to mean "empty" rather than "China", the same characters are pronounced Kong Soo Do in Korean.

Most schools of Tang Soo Do use the transcription "Tang Soo Do". Under the Korean government's Revised Romanization System (officially adopted in July 2007) the martial art's name would be rendered "Dang Su Do".