Li Gar
李家拳A southern Chinese family style, one of the five famous styles of Guangdong. Sources describe its origin in different ways, and it cannot yet be confirmed.
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About Li Gar
Li Gar, the fist of the Li family, is a southern Chinese style that the Chinese press ranks among the five famous Guangdong styles Hong, Liu, Cai, Li and Mo, that is Hung, Lau, Choy, Li and Mok. According to the newspaper Guangzhou Daily, these five took shape at the turn of the Ming and Qing dynasties. The link to southern Shaolin is tradition. Reliable sources on Li Gar as a separate style are very thin. Popular literature, which English Wikipedia cites, names various founders, for example Li Sou, Li Youshan or Li Yi, and they do not agree even on dating. We have not been able to confirm any of the versions. An academic study of the intangible heritage of Choy Li Fut states that its founder Chan Heung learned, among other things, the martial skills of the Li family and that one of his teachers was Li Youshan. The same study describes the Li family's contribution as an emphasis on the long bridge and the big stance, with straight-driven strikes, a stable stance and a powerful strike. This is, however, a Li component within Choy Li Fut, not necessarily today's separate Li Gar. We found no description of training, grades or current organizations. It is a poorly documented style and we are looking for reliable sources.
History
According to the newspaper Guangzhou Daily, five famous styles, Hong, Liu, Cai, Li and Mo, formed in Guangdong at the turn of the Ming and Qing dynasties. Sources on Li Gar as a separate style are poor, and at least two lines hide under its name. An academic study of the intangible heritage of Choy Li Fut states that its founder Chan Heung learned, among other things, the martial skills of the Li family, and one of his three teachers was Li Youshan. The Plum Blossom International Federation, which teaches Choy Li Fut, describes him as the founder of the Li style and a pharmacist in Xinhui. How long Chan Heung studied with him, it gives as three years in one place and four in another. The Dutch school Pak Mei Pai describes a second, Huizhou line of Li Ga, which according to it was created by Li Yi. According to it and to historian Ben Judkins, Bak Mei founder Cheung Lai Chuen learned from this style. The dates of Li Yi's life differ in the sources.
How it differs
Li Gar is not the same as Choy Li Fut. According to the academic study, the Li family is only one of three components Choy Li Fut's founder drew on, and according to the Plum Blossom International Federation Li Youshan was one of the two teachers after whom Chan Heung named the style. According to the Dutch school Pak Mei Pai, the Huizhou Li Ga must not be confused with Li Youshan's Xinhui style. Judkins states that many techniques of the Li family style that Cheung Lai Chuen learned later appeared in Bak Mei. Of the five Guangdong styles, Mok Gar is on the national list of intangible heritage, we did not find Li Gar listed.
Technique
An academic study of Choy Li Fut describes the Li family's contribution as stress on the long bridge and the big stance, with direct strikes, a stable stance and a strong punch, often with the left palm in defence and the right fist in attack. The Plum Blossom International Federation states that the Li style is known for strong footwork, South Chinese fist strikes and the tiger claw. In its school two forms from the Li style are still practised, the double-kick form Yin Yeung Twei Lin Wan and the long fist of the iron arrow Tit Jin Cheong Kuen. Both concern the Li component within Choy Li Fut, not necessarily a separate Li Gar.
Did you know
According to Doc-Fai Wong, a Choy Li Fut master, Chan Heung named his style in 1836 in honour of his two main teachers, Choy Fook and Li Yau-San, that is Li Youshan. The Plum Blossom International Federation relates that Li Yau-San appreciated how Chan Heung reached in ten years a level that he and Chan Yuen Woo needed twenty years to reach. The Dutch school Pak Mei Pai states that Li Yi created the Huizhou style after observing a fight between a snake and a crane, which is a tradition.
Frequently asked questions
Is Li Gar the same as Choy Li Fut?
No. According to an academic study, the Li family is only one of three components Choy Li Fut founder Chan Heung drew on.
Who was Li Youshan?
An academic study lists him as one of the three teachers of Choy Li Fut's founder. The Plum Blossom International Federation describes him as a pharmacist and teacher in Xinhui.
Is there only one Li Gar?
No. The Dutch school Pak Mei Pai distinguishes the Huizhou style of the Li family from Li Youshan's Xinhui style.
Similar styles
Selected by overlap in the style profile, not by historical lineage.