Chen Style Tai Chi vs. Yang Style Tai Chi
Quick answer
Yang style came out of Chen style, and Yang Luchan studied with Chen Changxing in Chen village. In the hand routine Chen style alternates tempo, reels silk and uses explosions of force (fajin), while Yang style, in the large-frame hand form of Yang Chengfu, is flowing and kept fajin, jumps and stamping only in the weapon forms. We did not find a study that would compare the two styles in demands.
At a glance
| Chen Style Tai Chi | Yang Style Tai Chi | |
|---|---|---|
| Country of origin | China | China |
| Origin | Early modern (present form) | 19th century (present form) |
| Founder | Chen Wangting | Yang LuchanYang Chengfu (codifier) |
| Contact | Light contact | Light contact |
| Sparring | Light contact | Light contact |
| Competition format | Forms | Forms |
| Olympic status | Not Olympic | Not Olympic |
| Rank recognition | unknown | unknown |
| Weapons | Weapons optional | Weapons optional |
| Forms | Forms at the core | Forms at the core |
| Relative cost | low | low |
| Katas and forms in the encyclopedia | 3 | 5 |
| Techniques in the encyclopedia | – | 4 |
Scales 1–5
Rated for the typical training of an adult beginner in an ordinary club, calibrated across all arts.
What each art is built from
Editorial rating 0–3: how much room each area gets in ordinary training.
History and relationship
Chen style (Chen Style Tai Chi) and Yang style (Yang Style Tai Chi) are two of the five family styles of taijiquan, and Yang style came out of Chen style. Yang Luchan studied with Chen Changxing in Chen village, and the sources name him as the first documented student from outside the Chen family.
- Chen style: how the Chen family came to a martial style, the sources do not explain. According to them, Chen Wangting (end of the 16th century) unified the training into seven routines, drawing on the manual Jixiao xinshu by Qi Jiguang.
- Chen style: Chen Changxing (1771–1853) narrowed the material to the routines Yilu and Erlu, and Chen Youben is associated with the small frame Xiaojia.
- Chen style: until 1928 it was taught only around Chen village, then Chen Fake taught in Beijing until his death in 1957 or 1958. In 2006 it entered the national list of intangible heritage of the PRC, and teaching abroad has existed since 1983.
- Yang style: Yang Luchan (1799–1872) from Yongnian in Hebei studied with Chen Changxing, according to one source since 1820. Around 1850 he taught in Beijing, and the details of his service to the imperial family differ in the sources.
- Yang style: from Yang Banhou’s student Wu Quanyou came Wu style, and Yang Jianhou passed on the middle frame, described as closer to Chen style.
- Yang style: Yang Chengfu (about 1883–1936) taught in Beijing until 1928, then in Shanghai, smoothed the family form into the large frame and popularised the style.
Technique
- Silk reeling (chansijin) as a hallmark of the style.
- Alternation of slow and fast movements, explosions of force (fajin) even in the hand routine.
- Yilu large and flowing, Erlu (Paochui) faster and more explosive.
- The new frame Xinjia with smaller circles and more compact stances.
- The large frame (da jia) with wide steps and large arcs of the arms.
- From the hand form Yang Chengfu removed fajin, jumps, stamping and sudden movements.
- In the weapon forms with sword, sabre, staff and spear, fajin and jumps remained.
- The middle frame of Yang Jianhou is described as more martial and closer to Chen style.
The difference in the hand form arose only with Yang Chengfu, and according to the sources the older frames of Yang style were closer to Chen style. Tuishou with the eight gates belongs to both styles, and the sources do not describe a form specific to Chen style or to Yang style.
Training
| Chen style | Yang style | |
|---|---|---|
| Before the routines | zhan zhuang standing and silk reeling qigong | we did not find any |
| Hand routines | Yilu and Erlu (Laojia), Xinjia, Xiaojia | the long form of the large frame, shortened and standardised routines |
| Weapons | shaking the pole or spear transfers silk reeling and fajin into the weapon | sword, sabre, staff and spear with fajin and jumps |
| Pairs | tuishou | tuishou |
The sources describe supplementary exercises only for Chen style. What a Yang style lesson looks like apart from the routines, we did not find.
Physical load and risks
- Liu et al. (Medical & Biological Engineering & Computing 2023, 13 experienced practitioners, four movements): greater lower-limb muscle force and greater forces in the knee than in a deep squat, and in stretch down and part the wild horse’s mane a higher load on the inner part of the knee.
- For people with knee osteoarthritis the authors suggest a higher stance and less knee flexion.
- Liu et al. 2019 (back pain) do not report adverse events.
- Wang et al. (BMJ 2018, fibromyalgia, classic Yang style): 12 intervention-related adverse events, 8 with taijiquan and 4 with aerobic exercise, mostly mild musculoskeletal complaints.
- We did not find a study of knee load in Yang style routines.
We did not find a study that would measure the load or demands of Chen style and Yang style side by side. The results of Liu 2023 apply to four movements of Chen style, not to Yang style.
Who it suits
| Chen style | Yang style | |
|---|---|---|
| Groups measured | adults from 50 years with back pain (Liu 2019) | adults with fibromyalgia, average 52 years (Wang 2018) |
| Family centre | the village of Chenjiagou in Henan | Shanxi, where Yang Zhenduo founded the Yang style association in 1982 |
Children
| Chen style | Yang style | |
|---|---|---|
| Children’s programmes | we did not find any | we did not find any |
| Age categories | we did not find any | we did not find any |
| Studies in children | we did not find any | we did not find any |
Self-defence
- Fajin and fast movements remain in the hand routine.
- The claim that the style has kept its martial effectiveness is, according to the sources, only a claim of some practitioners.
- The hand form of the large frame without explosions of force, the middle frame is described as more martial.
- We did not find a source on training against resistance.
For both styles this is a description of the shape of the forms, not training against resistance. We did not find a source on the use of Chen style or Yang style in self-defence.
Practical use
| Chen style | Yang style | |
|---|---|---|
| Back pain | Liu et al. (IJERPH 2019, 43 people from 50 years, 16 movements, 12 weeks): pain fell from 5.67 to 3.47 cm, with trunk stabilisation to 4.27, in controls 5.85 | we did not find any |
| Fibromyalgia | we did not find any | Wang et al. (BMJ 2018, 226 people, classic Yang style): a difference of 5.5 points in the FIQR questionnaire against aerobic exercise |
| Direct comparison | Zou et al. (Brain Sciences 2019, 80 people over 55, 12 weeks): the modified Chen style with 18 movements improved all five measured indicators more markedly than routine 24, namely cognition, one-leg stance, Timed Up and Go, chair rising and walking | routine 24 as the comparison group |
Zou 2019 compared a modified form of Chen style with routine 24, not the traditional routines of both styles, and we know the results only from the abstract. Taijiquan studies without a named style, for example on falls in older people, are not studies of Chen style or of Yang style. Nothing can be inferred about one style from studies of the other.
Competition
| Chen style | Yang style | |
|---|---|---|
| Competition routine | 56 movements, devised by Kan Gui Xiang of the Beijing Sports Institute, we did not verify its relation to IWUF | lists give competition forms 40 and 46, we did not find the author or the rules |
| Own competition | the international Chen style championship is held in the village of Chenjiagou | we did not find any |
| Shared | taijiquan is an IWUF taolu discipline, combined routines 48 (1976) and 42 (1989) | taijiquan is an IWUF taolu discipline, combined routines 48 (1976) and 42 (1989) |
Availability and organisations
| Chen style | Yang style | |
|---|---|---|
| Organisations | we did not find any | Shanxi Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan Association (1982) and International Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan Association (1998), both founded by Yang Zhenduo |
| Grades | we did not find a grading system | we did not find a grading system |
| Spread | until 1928 only around Chen village, abroad since the eighties | Beijing from Yang Luchan, Shanghai from 1928, Yang Chengfu’s student Cheng Man-ch’ing to the USA in 1964 |
Switching and combining
- From Chen style to Yang style: the transition was made by Yang Luchan, a student of Chen Changxing.
- Fajin, jumps and stamping in the hand routine decrease, wide steps and large arcs increase.
- Fajin and jumps remain in the weapon forms of Yang style.
- From Yang style to Chen style: silk reeling and alternation of tempo increase.
- Erlu (Paochui) adds a faster and more explosive routine.
- The middle frame of Yang Jianhou is described as closer to Chen style.
On the left the move from Chen style to Yang style, on the right the opposite. We did not find a study of practitioners moving between the two styles.
Forms and terminology
| Chen style | Yang style | |
|---|---|---|
| Family routines | Laojia 74 and 44 movements, Xinjia 83 and 71, Xiaojia 78 and 50 | the long form of the large frame, about 150 movements (originally 300), teachers divide it into 85, 88, 103 or 108 postures |
| Shortened routines | Chen Xiaowang 38 and 19 (1995), Chen Zhenglei 18, Zhu Tiancai 13 (1997) | Cheng Man-ch’ing 37 postures (until 1946), standardised 88 |
| Weapons | sabre, sword, staff, spear, for Chen Wangting also the hook | sword, sabre, staff, spear |
The numbers of movements differ in both styles according to version, teacher and way of counting. The shortened forms of Cheng Man-ch’ing are not recognised by the Yang family. The simplified routine 24 from 1956 is based on traditional Yang style. Xinjia is attributed in the sources to different people, and the authorship remains disputed.
Which to choose
Frequently asked questions
How are Chen style and Yang style related?
Yang Luchan studied with Chen Changxing in Chen village as the first documented student from outside the family, and Yang style came out of this teaching. From the Yang style line then came Wu style and routine 24.
How do their routines differ?
Chen style has in its hand routine an alternation of slow and fast movements and explosions of force (fajin). Yang Chengfu removed them from the hand form of Yang style together with jumps and stamping, and kept them in the weapon forms.
Do health studies of taijiquan apply to both styles?
Only those that name the style. The Liu 2019 study is about Chen style, Wang 2018 in BMJ about Yang style. Studies without a named style cannot be attributed to either of them.