A Brief History of Tai Chi
Famous Tai Chi Master |
Interestingly, the "chi" of "tai chi" is not the same "chi" as the word meaning "life energy". The term "t'ai chi ch'uan" - later shortened to "tai chi" - translates as "supreme ultimate fist", "boundless fist", or "great extremes boxing". The chi in this instance is the Wade-Giles transliteration of the Pinyin jí, and is distinct from qì (ch'i, "life energy").
There are five major styles of t'ai chi ch'uan, each named after the Chinese family from which it originated:
Chen-style of Chen Wangting (1580–1660)
Yang-style of Yang Lu-ch'an (1799–1872)
Wu- or Wu (Hao)-style of Wu Yu-hsiang (1812–1880)
Wu-style of Wu Ch'uan-yu (1834–1902) and his son Wu Chien-ch'uan (1870–1942)
Sun-style of Sun Lu-t'ang (1861–1932)
For more information on the major Tai Chi styles, click here. All of them can be traced back to a single man, Chen Wang Ting, a general of the latter years of the Ming Dynasty, who around 1644 created seven sets, only two of which have survived to the present day.