Taizuquan (Grand Ancestor Fist)
太祖拳Fujian style named for the Song dynasty founder. Attribution to the emperor is tradition, the name is attested by Qi Jiguang in the 16th century, now part of wuzuquan and Fujian heritage.
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What the style is built from
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About Taizuquan (Grand Ancestor Fist)
Taizuquan bears the name of Emperor Taizu, i.e. Zhao Kuangyin (927 to 976), founder of the Song dynasty. Attribution to the ruler is tradition, not historical evidence, and we have not found a contemporary Song-era source. The name is attested: General Qi Jiguang, in the manual Jixiao xinshu of the sixties of the 16th century, names among the fists of his day 32 stances of the long fist of the Song emperor Taizu and writes in one verse that the tanma stance is handed down from Taizu. Fujian Daily raises the possibility that taizuquan spread from the Song era and relates to the Southern Office for the Imperial Clan in Quanzhou.
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The attested form is southern Chinese, Fujianese. Taizu is one of the five fists of wuzuquan, on China's national list of intangible heritage since 2008 (No. 803, Quanzhou), and the Fujian provincial list has had the item Zhangzhou Taizuquan Qinglong zhen since 2011. The link to wuzuquan is read in two ways: the prevailing interpretation attributes the origin of wuzuquan to Cai Yuming in the late 19th century, from popular Quanzhou styles, while Zhou Kunmin, in his book Quanzhou Taizuquan (Chinese 2007, English 2017), makes taizuquan the older foundation. Weng Xinhui's study (2009) states that Cai Yuming first taught his style under the name taizuquan, and by it taizu zu, the leg of Taizu, is among the five ancestors of wuzuquan techniques. Zhou's book describes the three main empty-hand forms, among them Three Battles, and forms with the pole and the staff. The division into a northern taizu changquan and a southern nan taizuquan, the lists of forms and the spread in Taiwan are stated only by English Wikipedia, and we have not found a federation or study source for them. Taizuquan is not on the national list on its own.
History
Emperor Taizu, Zhao Kuangyin, lived from 927 to 976, ruled from 960 and founded the Song dynasty. Britannica does not mention martial arts in connection with him, and we have not found a contemporary source linking him with the style. The earliest evidence of the name is in the Jixiao xinshu of General Qi Jiguang, whose eighteen-volume version dates from 1560 to 1561. In the chapter on boxing he lists 32 stances of the long fist of the Song emperor Taizu alongside the six-step fist, the monkey fist and the Hua fist, then chose 32 stances of his own from all fists of past and present, and in the verse on the third stance, tanma, he writes that it is handed down from Taizu. Fujian Daily on the Fujian government portal (2023) raises the possibility that taizuquan spread from the Song era and relates to the Southern Office for the Imperial Clan in Quanzhou under the Southern Song.
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Modern history is bound up with wuzuquan. According to a study by Weng Xinhui (Tiyu xuekan, 2009), Cai Yuming first taught his style under the name taizuquan, and in 1906 Sun Yat-sen is said to have written the inscription Hongyang taizuquan for Cai's student Weng Chaoyan. In 1918 Yu Zhusan, in the Zhonghua rou shu daquan, already distinguished Cai's style from taizuquan. Wuzuquan, with the five fists Damo, Taizu, Luohan, Xingzhe and Baihe, joined the national list of intangible heritage in 2008 (No. 803, Quanzhou). On 14 December 2011 the Fujian provincial list accepted the item Zhangzhou Taizuquan Qinglong zhen, with Zhangzhou Shiwei Wuguan as its bearer. Taizuquan is not on the national list on its own.
How it differs
The link to wuzuquan is explained in two ways. The prevailing interpretation, summarized by Ben Judkins, attributes the origin of wuzuquan to Cai Yuming in the late 19th century, by combining popular Quanzhou styles, with taizuquan as one of its five fists. Zhou Kunmin objects in his book Quanzhou Taizuquan and makes taizuquan the older, leading component of wuzuquan. Weng Xinhui's study shows that Cai's style was initially called taizuquan and was distinguished from it in the literature from 1918. English Wikipedia distinguishes a northern taizu changquan and a southern nan taizuquan, but for the northern branch it gives Guangdong, which is a southern province, and we have not found a study-level source for this division.
Technique
Technical description in federation and study sources is sparse. Weng Xinhui lists taizu zu, the leg of Taizu, among the five ancestors of wuzuquan techniques, beside bai he shou, qi tian zhi, da zun shen and luohan bu, without describing the movement. According to Ben Judkins's review, Zhou Kunmin's book Quanzhou Taizuquan describes in detail the three key empty-hand forms, among them the form Three Battles, and weapon forms with the pole and the staff. English Wikipedia lists four zhangquan forms for the northern branch and the forms Xiao simen, Da simen, Wu bu, Fei bagua and Luohan quan for the southern one, with weapons from the staff Taizu gun to the sword Qinglong jian. We found no study-level source for these lists.
Training
Weng Xinhui describes how taizuquan was taught in the village of Dawutang as a supplement to the eight forms of the cishi lion dance of the Weng clan. Zhou Kunmin, national bearer of intangible heritage for wuzuquan, began studying Quanzhou styles in 1961 at the Quanzhou Wushu Research Society and in 1963 joined the wushu team of Xiamen University. His book Quanzhou Taizuquan: The Art of Fujian Emperor First Kung Fu (Chinese 2007, English Tambuli Media 2017, 241 pages, translated by Carol Lyngarde-Lane and Simon T. Lailey) has chapters on pedagogy, training and key techniques. According to the description of the national list, Zhou teaches more than a thousand students at home and abroad.
Today
Today taizuquan lives on mainly as part of wuzuquan in Fujian. The bearer of the national item wuzuquan is the Quanzhou Wushu Association, and the national representative bearer is Zhou Kunmin (born in April 1945 in Quanzhou), who chaired the International Southern Shaolin Wuzuquan Fellowship from 2005 and later served as deputy mayor of Quanzhou. The provincial item Zhangzhou Taizuquan Qinglong zhen is protected by Zhangzhou Shiwei Wuguan. According to Fujian Daily, the international wuzuquan competition in Jakarta in 2023 had 43 teams from 11 countries. The spread of taizuquan in Taiwan and Southeast Asia is stated only by English Wikipedia.
Did you know
According to Fujian Daily, ancestral tablets of Taizu, Dazun, Xingzhe, Luohan and Baihe are venerated in the wuzuquan halls of Quanzhou. In the 16th century Qi Jiguang named Taizu's long fist beside the monkey fist and the six-step fist, and in the verse on the tanma stance he wrote that it is handed down from Taizu, the earliest traceable evidence linking the emperor's name with the style.
Frequently asked questions
Did Emperor Zhao Kuangyin found taizuquan?
Attribution to Emperor Taizu is a tradition. The earliest traceable text is the Jixiao xinshu by Qi Jiguang from the 16th century, which names 32 stances of the long fist of the Song emperor Taizu.
Is taizuquan on China's national list of intangible heritage?
Not on its own. Taizu is one of the five fists of wuzuquan, inscribed in 2008 under number 803, and the Fujian provincial list has had the item Zhangzhou Taizuquan Qinglong zhen since 2011.
How are taizuquan and wuzuquan related?
Taizuquan is one of the five fists of wuzuquan. The prevailing interpretation attributes the origin of wuzuquan to Cai Yuming in the late 19th century, while Zhou Kunmin regards taizuquan as its older foundation.
Similar styles
Selected by overlap in the style profile, not by historical lineage.