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Nandao
Nandao is a kind of sword that is used mostly in contemporary Chinese wushu exercises and forms. It is the southern variation of the "northern broadsword", or Beidao. Its blade bears some resemblance to the butterfly sword, also a southern Chinese single-bladed weapon; the main difference is the size, and the fact that the butterfly swords have D-shaped knuckle guards. The main difference with the beidao is that the nandao is mostly used two-handed due to its larger amount of weight, and it has a large metal crossguard useful in deflecting blows and hooking the opponent's weapon; also, although it is single-edged, the nandao is not curved like the northern broadsword. The differentiation between beidao and nandao appear to be rather modern. There is no historical usage of the term and few antique weapons have been found with a shape that resembles a "nandao". Therefore, it can never have been a major form as widely used as niuweidao, yanmaodao, liuyedao and the Butterfly swords ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese Swords
Historically, Chinese swords are classified into two types, the ''jian'' and the ''Dao (Chinese sword), dao''. A ''Jian'' is a straight, double-edged sword mainly used for stabbing, and has been commonly translated into the English language as a longsword; while a ''dao'' is a single-edged sword (mostly curved from the Song dynasty forward) mainly used for cutting, and has been translated as a saber or a "knife". Bronze ''jian''s appeared during the Western Zhou period, and switched to the more durable wrought iron and steel during the late Warring States period. In modern times, the ceremonial Chinese officer's sword, commissioned officer's sword of the People's Liberation Army Navy, Chinese navy has been patterned after the traditional ''jian'' since 2008. Besides specialty weapons like the butterfly sword, butterfly ''dao'', Chinese swords are usually in length. However, longer swords have been found on occasion. Outside of Ancient China, Chinese swords were also used in Ancie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dao (Chinese Sword)
''Dao'' (pronunciation: , English approximation: , Chinese: 刀; pinyin: ''dāo'') are single-edged Chinese swords, primarily used for slashing and chopping. The most common form is also known as the Chinese sabre, although those with wider blades are sometimes referred to as Chinese broadswords. In China, the dao is considered one of the four traditional weapons, along with the ''gun'' (stick or staff), '' qiang'' (spear), and the ''jian'' (double-edged sword), called in this group "The General of Weapons". Name In Chinese, the word can be applied to ''any'' weapon with a single-edged blade and usually refers to knives. Because of this, the term is sometimes translated as knife or Nonetheless, within Chinese martial arts and in military contexts, the larger "sword" versions of the ''dao'' are usually intended. General characteristics While dao have varied greatly over the centuries, most single-handed dao of the Ming period and later and the modern swords based on them s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wushu (sport)
''Wushu'' (), or ''Kung fu'', is a hard and soft and complete martial art, as well as a full-contact combat sport. It has a long history in reference to Chinese martial arts. It was developed in 1949 in an effort to standardize the practice of traditional Chinese martial arts, yet attempts to structure the various decentralized martial arts traditions date back earlier, when the Central Guoshu Institute was established at Nanking in 1928. "''Wushu''" is the Chinese term for "martial arts" (武 "Wu" = combat or martial, 術 "Shu" = art). In contemporary times, Wushu has become an international sport under the International Wushu Federation (IWUF), which holds the World Wushu Championships every two years. Wushu is an official event at the Asian Games, East Asian Youth Games, Southeast Asian Games, World Combat Games, and in various other multi-sport events. Name The word wu (武; wǔ) means ‘martial’. Its Chinese character is made of two parts; the first meaning “wal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sword
A sword is an edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter blade with a pointed tip. A slashing sword is more likely to be curved and to have a sharpened cutting edge on one or both sides of the blade. Many swords are designed for both thrusting and slashing. The precise definition of a sword varies by historical epoch and geographic region. Historically, the sword developed in the Bronze Age, evolving from the dagger; the earliest specimens date to about 1600 BC. The later Iron Age sword remained fairly short and without a crossguard. The spatha, as it developed in the Late Roman army, became the predecessor of the European sword of the Middle Ages, at first adopted as the Migration Period sword, and only in the High Middle Ages, developed into the classical arming sword with crossguard. The word '' sword'' continue ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese Martial Art
Chinese martial arts, often called by the umbrella terms kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (), are multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater China. These fighting styles are often classified according to common traits, identified as "families" of martial arts. Examples of such traits include ''Shaolinquan'' () physical exercises involving All Other Animals () mimicry or training methods inspired by Old Chinese philosophies, religions and legends. Styles that focus on qi manipulation are called '' internal'' (; ), while others that concentrate on improving muscle and cardiovascular fitness are called '' external'' (; ). Geographical association, as in ''northern'' (; ) and ''southern'' (; ), is another popular classification method. Terminology ''Kung fu'' and ''wushu'' are loanwords from Cantonese and Mandarin respectively that, in English, are used to refer to Chinese martial arts. However, the Chinese terms ''kung fu'' and ''wushu'' (; ) ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Butterfly Sword
The butterfly sword is a short dao, or single-edged sword, originally from southern China, though it has also seen use in the north. It is thought that butterfly swords date from the early 19th century. Several English language accounts from the 1840s describe local militia in Guangdong being trained in the "double swords", short swords with a hook extending from the guard, and fitting into a single scabbard. The blade of a butterfly sword is roughly as long as a human forearm, which allows easy concealment inside loose sleeves or boots, and allows greater maneuverability when spinning and rotating during close-quarters fighting. Butterfly swords are usually wielded in pairs. A pair of swords will often be carried side by side within the same scabbard, so as to give the appearance of a single weapon. The butterfly sword has a small crossguard to protect the hands of the wielder, similar to that of a ''sai'', which can also be used to block or hook an opponent's weapon. In some ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Niuweidao
The ''Niuweidao'' () was a type of Chinese saber (dao) of the late Qing Dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ... period. A heavy bladed weapon with a characteristic flaring tip, it was primarily a civilian weapon, as Imperial troops were never issued it. References * * Chinese swords Blade weapons {{Sword-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yanmaodao
The ''Yanmaodao'' () is a type of dao used as a standard military weapon during the Ming Dynasty and middle Qing Dynasty (1368–1800). The blade is straight until the curve begins around the center of percussion along the last 1/4 or so of the blade approaching the tip. The center of percussion is the point on the blade with the least vibration on hard contact, the spot on the blade that transmits the most power to the target in a hard chop. This allows for thrusting attacks and overall handling similar to that of the jian, while still preserving much of the dao's strengths in cutting and slashing.Tom 2005, p. 77 This type of sword seems to have lost its popularity with military and martial arts practitioners alike by the end of the 18th century. Yanmaodao almost invariably have straight grips, although downward-curved handles are depicted in Ming artwork. During the last century of Qing rule, curved grips became far more prevalent than straight. Notes and references *Tom, Ph ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Liuyedao
The ''liuyedao'' or ''willow-leaf saber'' is a type of dao that was commonly used as a military sidearm for both cavalry and infantry during the Ming and Qing dynasties. A descendant of the earlier Mongol saber the liuyedao remained the most popular type of single handed sabre during the Ming dynasty, replacing the role of the Jian in the military. Many schools of Chinese martial arts Chinese martial arts, often called by the umbrella terms Kung fu (term), kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (sport), wushu (), are Styles of Chinese martial arts, multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater China. Th ... originally trained with this weapon.Tom 2005, pp. 77-78 This weapon features a moderate curve along the length of the blade. This reduces thrusting ability (though it is still fairly effective at same) while increasing the power of cuts and slashes. The hilts are typically straight, but can be re-curved downward starting in the 18th century. It weigh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Butterfly Swords
The butterfly sword is a short dao, or single-edged sword, originally from southern China, though it has also seen use in the north. It is thought that butterfly swords date from the early 19th century. Several English language accounts from the 1840s describe local militia in Guangdong being trained in the "double swords", short swords with a hook extending from the guard, and fitting into a single scabbard. The blade of a butterfly sword is roughly as long as a human forearm, which allows easy concealment inside loose sleeves or boots, and allows greater maneuverability when spinning and rotating during close-quarters fighting. Butterfly swords are usually wielded in pairs. A pair of swords will often be carried side by side within the same scabbard, so as to give the appearance of a single weapon. The butterfly sword has a small crossguard to protect the hands of the wielder, similar to that of a ''sai'', which can also be used to block or hook an opponent's weapon. In s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese Martial Arts Terminology
Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of various ethnicities in contemporary China ** Han Chinese, the largest ethnic group in the world and the majority ethnic group in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and Singapore ** Ethnic minorities in China, people of non-Han Chinese ethnicities in modern China ** Ethnic groups in Chinese history, people of various ethnicities in historical China ** Nationals of the People's Republic of China ** Nationals of the Republic of China ** Overseas Chinese, Chinese people residing outside the territories of Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan * Sinitic languages, the major branch of the Sino-Tibetan language family ** Chinese language, a group of related languages spoken predominantly in China, sharing a written script (Chinese c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blade Weapons
An edged weapon, or bladed weapon, is a melee weapon with a cutting edge. Bladed weapons include swords, daggers, knives, and bayonets. Edged weapons are used to cut, hack, or slash; some edged weapons (such as many kinds of swords) may also permit thrusting and stabbing. Edged weapons contrast with blunt weapons such as maces, and with thrusting weapons such as spears. Many edged agricultural tools such as machetes, hatchets, pitchforks, axes, sickles, sling blades, and scythes, have been used as improvised weapons by peasantry, militia, or irregular forces – particularly as an expedient for defence. Edged weapons and blades are associated with the premodern age but continue to be used in modern armies. Combat knives and knife bayonets are used for close combat or stealth operations and are issued as a secondary or sidearm. Modern bayonets are often intended to be used in a dual role as both a combat knife and knife bayonet. Improvised edged weapons were extensively used in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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