Fu Jow Pai (Tiger Claw)
虎爪派Tiger claw kung-fu style, formerly called Hark Fu Moon. According to its schools it leads to Wong Bil Hong, and his nephew Wong Moon Toy brought it to New York.
Quick Facts
ChinaCharacter & Origin
Training
Who It Suits
Organisation & Competition
What the style is built from
Editorial rating on a 0–3 scale, based on how much room each area gets in ordinary training.
Catalogs & Databases for Fu Jow Pai (Tiger Claw)
About Fu Jow Pai (Tiger Claw)
Fu Jow Pai, in Chinese 虎爪派, that is the Tiger Claw style, is a kung-fu style. English Wikipedia states that it focuses on strikes, throws and locks and imitates the South Chinese tiger, that is tearing, raking and gripping. It names Shaolin and Hung Gar as its parent styles. The American school Wai Hong's Fu Jow Pai states that the system, also called the Black Tiger System, comes from Shaolin in Fujian and that Wong Bil Hong (1841 to 1934) received the teaching from a monk in the Hoy Hong temple. The Greek school School of Evolution Tiger adds that the monk's name was never disclosed. According to Wikipedia, Wong Bil Hong began studying Hark Fu Moon, 黑虎門, in 1876 and renamed the system Fu Jow Pai in 1934. According to the Wai Hong school, in 1934 his nephew Wong Moon Toy moved to New York's Chinatown, and in 1957 the Chinese Youth Athletic Club was founded there and the style was presented publicly. We have not found specialist literature or press on Fu Jow Pai, and the history rests on the schools' own accounts.
History
Wai Hong's Fu Jow Pai school states that Wong Bil Hong first learned Hung Gar from Wong Kay Ying and then from his son Wong Fei Hong. School of Evolution Tiger writes that he was born in 1841 in Canton and that an old monk ended a duel of two masters in the courtyard of the Hoy Hong temple. According to it, Wong Bil Hong taught only two students, his nephew Wong Moon Toy and a servant. Wong Moon Toy (1907 to 1960) began learning from his uncle in 1927, according to the Wai Hong school. The Chinese Youth Athletic Club arose in 1957, according to School of Evolution Tiger, with his consent and help from Chow Wan Sau, Ngok P. Eng and Wai Hong.
Technique
The Wai Hong's Fu Jow Pai school lists as its basic forms the four Tiger Forms, Tiger Claw Staff, Tiger Claw Saber, Empty Hand Matching Set, Empty Hands vs. Saber, Matched Tiger Claw Staff, Saber vs. Staff and Straight Sword. According to it, li gong strength training includes 18 Tiger Claws, Iron Hands and Tiger Claw Gong. English Wikipedia describes the technique as imitation of the tiger, tearing, raking and gripping, together with strikes, throws and joint manipulation.
Competition
English Wikipedia states, without a citation, that in 1971 Wai Hong sponsored the first open full-contact kung-fu tournament in the USA. The Wai Hong school writes that in the seventies he supported tournament fighting and helped create the Eastern United States Kung Fu Federation and the United Kung Fu Federation of North America.
Today
According to his school, Wai Hong was born in 1938 and became the successor of Wong Moon Toy after his death in 1960. According to it, in 1968 he transformed the Chinese Youth Athletic Club into the Fu Jow Pai association. The school calls him the father of modern Fu Jow Pai and lists certified branches on several continents. English Wikipedia writes that he founded the Eastern United States Kung-Fu Federation and led it for eight years.
Did you know
English Wikipedia places the renaming of the style in 1934, while School of Evolution Tiger writes that Wong Bil Hong renamed the style shortly before his death in 1934. Discussants on the Martialtalk forum point out that all known sources on the style lead through the line of Wong Bil Hong and Wai Hong.
Frequently asked questions
Who founded Fu Jow Pai?
According to its schools, Wong Bil Hong (1841 to 1934), who received the teaching from a monk at the Hoy Hong temple.
How did Fu Jow Pai get to the USA?
According to the Wai Hong school, Wong Moon Toy moved to New York in 1934, and in 1957 the Chinese Youth Athletic Club was founded there.
What is typical of Fu Jow Pai technique?
English Wikipedia states imitation of the tiger, tearing, raking and gripping, together with strikes, throws and locks.
Similar styles
Selected by overlap in the style profile, not by historical lineage.