Fānziquán
| Also known as | Rotating fist, Bāshǎnfān, 八閃翻, 8 flash tumbles, BāfānMén, 八翻门, 8 Rotations School |
|---|---|
| Focus | Striking, weapons training |
| Country of origin |
 China
|
| Creator | Qi Jiguang (attribute) |
| Famous practitioners | Wang Zhiyuan Li Gongran Li Erlou Feng Zhenyuan Zhao Canyi |
| Parenthood | Northern Shaolin Kung Fu |
| Descendant arts | Eagle Claw, Tongbeiquan Ma family style, Mianzhang Fanzi |
| Olympic sport | No |
Fānziquán (Chinese: 翻子拳; literally "Rotating fist") is a Chinese martial art that emphasizes offense and defense with the hands. Its movements have been described as:
Fānziquán routines are usually quite short and very fast. It is a source of many other modern styles like Eagle Claw.
Until at least the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644), Fānziquán was known as Bāshǎnfān (Chinese: 八閃翻; literally "8 flash tumbles"), or "8 evasive tumbles" and is attributed to General Qi Jiguang. Whereas in the Qing Dynasty it art is known as BāfānMén (Chinese: 八翻门; literally "8 Rotations School").
According to the Bafanquan manuals, during the Ming dynasty a master named Wang Zhiyuan had been taught the boxing by a mountain wanderer in the turn of the 17th century. It is said that Master Wang was an accomplished warrior but had become injured in battle in a remote part of what is currently Shandong province. There, the wanderer assisted with Master Wang's injuries and instructed him in the methods of Bafanquan to improve his already good martial skills.
The style then passed down through various generations in the Northern provinces such as Henan, Hebei and Shandong. During the Qing dynasty, one of the most famous exponents of the style was Master Li Gongran from Xiong county in Hebei province. During that time he became a famed boxer, and it was claimed that "from Nanjing to Beijing, all Fanzi under heaven belongs to Li Gong (Grandmaster Li)". This indicated how key he was to the spread and development of the style. His son Li Erlou, and disciple Feng Zhenyuan, taught the style in Sunning county. Their students founded many "Security Logistics Bureaus".
In modern times, Fānziquán is often taught in conjunction with Chuōjiǎo, not unlike how Xíngyìquán and Bāguàzhǎng are often taught together. The routines of Chuōjiǎo, with its kicks, wide open stances and focus on hard power, were known as Martial Routines and those of Fānziquán, with their more compact movements combining soft and hard power, were known as Scholarly Routines, which is why the Chuōjiǎo/Fānziquán combination is known as Wen Wu or Martial-Scholar.
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Wikipedia