History of Taekwondo

Taekwondo (태권도) is a traditional Korean martial art, self-defence system and Olympic sport. Taekwondo is South Korea’s national sport and is the world’s most popular martial art, with an estimated 70 million practitioners worldwide.

‘Tae’ (태) means to jump, kick or smash with the feet, ‘Kwon’ (권) means to block, punch, strike or smash with the hand or fist and ‘Do’ (도) means the ‘Art’ or ‘Way’. Thus, Taekwondo translates as ‘The Way of the Hand and Foot’ or ‘The Art of Hand and Foot Fighting’.

Its origins date back to nearly 2000 years, but its creation back to life is relatively recent. Translated literally as “The way of the foot and fist”, the earliest sign of history was founded in Korea in the Kak-je-tomb, where drawings depicting two men in a fighting stance can be seen.

In 1955 General Choi Hong Hi founded the martial art which rapidly speared around the world in the form of ITF (International Taekwondo Federation) within just 11 years of its creation in 1966.

In just 58 years, ITF Taekwondo as defined and created by General Choi has grown into one of the world’s leading martial arts with estimation of over 8 million students worldwide which includes over 160000 UK based students.

So why has Taekwondo become such a popular and well documented sport? What sets it apart from other martial arts, and why do so many people participate in this sport? At a fundamental level, the answer to all these questions is the same; Taekwondo is truly a modern martial art which incorporates self-defence moves even suitable for a child or an elderly person. This sets it apart from other martial arts and enhances its uniqueness.

Today, people from all ages, backgrounds, sexes and religions practice Taekwondo and because General Choi’s experience and research was the fundamental basis for this martial art, it somehow makes it a very personal to practice.

As a child, General Choi studied Taek Kyon, a traditional Korean martial art. He then travelled to Japan, whereas a young man he mastered the art of Shotokan Karate and achieved II Degree black belt. When he returned to Korea, as proud as he was of his origins and country and as a patriot, he still always managed to acknowledge and incorporate other forms of martial arts as well as techniques and concepts outside of Korea. This was exactly what he did with the early creation of Taekwondo, and his willingness to appreciate and study other forms was the birth of Taekwondo.