Editing History of martial arts (section)

===China===
{{Main|History of Chinese martial arts}}

====Antiquity (Zhou to Jin)====
A hand-to-hand combat theory, including the integration of notions of [[Hard and soft (martial arts)|"hard" and "soft"]] techniques, is expounded in the story of the ''Maiden of Yue'' in the [[Spring and Autumn Annals]] of Wu and Yue (5th century BCE).<ref>trans. and ed. Zhang Jue (1994), pp. 367-370, cited after Hennin (1999) p. 321 and note 8.</ref>

The ''[[Book of Han|Han History]] Bibliographies'' record that, by the [[Former Han]] (206 BC – 9 AD), there was a distinction between no-holds-barred weaponless fighting, which it calls ''shǒubó'' (手搏), for which "how-to" manuals had already been written, and sportive wrestling, then known as juélì or [[jiǎolì]] (角力).

Wrestling is also documented in the Shǐ Jì, ''[[Records of the Grand Historian]]'', written by [[Sima Qian]] (c. 100 BCE).<ref name=Henning>Henning, Stanley E. (Fall 1999). [http://muse.jhu.edu/demo/china_review_international/v006/6.2henning.pdf Academia Encounters the Chinese Martial arts]. ''China Review International'' '''6''' (2): 319–332. ISSN 1069-5834</ref>

Jiǎolì is also mentioned in the [[Classic of Rites]] (1st century BCE).<ref name=classicofrites>[[Classic of Rites]]. Chapter 6, Yuèlìng. Line 108.</ref>

In the 1st century, "Six Chapters of Hand Fighting", were included in the ''Han Shu'' (history of the Former Han Dynasty) written by [[Ban Gu]].
The [[Five Animals]] concept in Chinese martial arts is attributed to [[Hua Tuo]], a 3rd-century physician.<ref>Dingbo. Wu, Patrick D. Murphy (1994), "Handbook of Chinese Popular Culture", Greenwood Press, {{ISBN|0-313-27808-3}}</ref>

====Middle Ages====
In the [[Tang dynasty]], descriptions of [[sword dance]]s were immortalized in poems by [[Li Bai]] and [[Du Fu]]. In the Song and Yuan dynasties, xiangpu (the earliest form of [[sumo]]) contests were sponsored by the imperial courts.<ref>The ''customary [[Bowing]] of martial arts'' is thus due to the "transmission of the task or work to be carried out", in ancient times precisely for the reigning [[Empire]]</ref>

In regard to the [[Shaolin Kung Fu|Shaolin]] fighting system, the oldest evidence of Shaolin participation in combat is a stele from 728 CE that attests to two occasions: a defense of the [[Shaolin Monastery]] from bandits around 610 CE, and their subsequent role in the defeat of [[Wang Shichong]] at the [[Battle of Hulao]] in 621 CE. From the 8th to the 15th centuries, there are no extant documents that provide evidence of Shaolin participation in combat.

====Late Ming====
The modern concepts of wushu emerge by the late Ming to early Qing dynasties (16th to 17th centuries).<ref>China Sportlight Series (1986) "Sports and Games in Ancient China". New World Press, {{ISBN|0-8351-1534-8}}.</ref>

Between the 16th and 17th centuries there are at least forty extant sources which provided evidence that, not only did monks of Shaolin practice martial arts, but martial practice had become such an integral element of Shaolin monastic life that the monks felt the need to justify it by creating new [[Buddhist]] lore.<ref>Shahar, Meir (2000). "Epigraphy, Buddhist Historiography, and Fighting Monks: The Case of The Shaolin Monastery". Asia Major Third Series 13 (2): 15–36.</ref>

References of martial practice in Shaolin appear in various literary genres of the late Ming: the epitaphs of Shaolin warrior monks, martial-arts manuals, military encyclopedias, historical writings, travelogues, fiction, and even poetry. However these sources do not point out to any specific style originated in Shaolin.<ref>Shahar, Meir (December 2001). "Ming-Period Evidence of Shaolin Martial Practice". Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies 61 (2): 359–413. {{ISSN|0073-0548}}.</ref>

These sources, in contrast to those from the Tang period, refer to Shaolin methods of armed combat. This include the forte of Shaolin monks and for which they had become famous — the [[Gun (staff)|staff (gun)]]; General [[Qi Jiguang]] included these techniques in his book, Treatise of Effective Discipline.<ref>Henning, Stanley (1999). "Martial arts Myths of Shaolin Monastery, Part I: The Giant with the Flaming Staff". Journal of the Chenstyle Taijiquan Research Association of Hawaii 5 (1), Shahar, Meir (2007), The Shaolin Monastery: History, Religion and the Chinese Martial arts", Honolulu: The University of Hawai'i Press</ref>

====20th Century====
At the beginning of the century, first attempts were made to standardize the practice of Traditional Chinese Martial Arts in cities. A notable example was that of the Jing Wu Academy.<ref>{{cite book|last=Kennedy|first=Brian|author-link= |year=2010|title=Jingwu: The School that Transformed Kung Fu|publisher=Blue Snake Books|isbn=978-1583942420}}</ref> 

The rise of the [[Proclamation of the People's Republic of China|People's Republic of China]] has gradually led to many changes in the practice, culture and dissemination of Chinese Martial Arts.<ref>{{cite book|last=Lorge|first=Peter|author-link=Peter Lorge|year=2017|title=Chinese Martial Arts: From Antiquity to the Twenty-First Century|publisher=Cambridge University|isbn=978-1316633687}}</ref> While on one hand, many martial arts teachers were persecuted because of their political view or activities,<ref>{{cite book|last=Henning|first=Stanley|author-link=Stanley Henning|year=1999|title=Academia Encounters the Chinese Martial Arts|publisher=University of Hawai’i Press|isbn=978-0824819483}}</ref> the [[Communism|communist]] government also invested in the creation of new styles: [[Sanda (sport)|Sanda]], [[Wushu (sport)|Modern Wushu]], and Standardized [[Tai Chi|Taiji Quan]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Wile|first=Douglas|author-link=Douglas Wile|year=1996|title=Lost T'ai-chi Classics from the Late Ch'ing Dynasty|publisher=SUNY Press|isbn=978-0791426535}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Morris|first=Andrew|year=2004|title=Marrow of the Nation: A History of Sport and Physical Culture in Republican China|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=978-0520240841}}</ref> Later, beginning in the 1980s, the [[Chinese Communist Party]] also began to promote Traditional Chinese Martial Arts.<ref>{{cite book|last=Bluestein|first=Jonathan|author-link=Jonathan Bluestein|year=2024|title=Martial Arts Politics Explained|publisher=Amazon Digital Services LLC - KDP|isbn=979-8335564984}}</ref>

From the 1970s, Traditional Chinese Martial Arts slowly became very popular in Western Countries as well. The development and spread of Chinese [[Kung fu film|Kung Fu movies]] from [[Hong Kong]] greatly contributed to this, especially via the influence of [[Bruce Lee]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Krug|first=Gary|author-link=Gary Krug|year=2001|title=Communication, Technology, and Cultural Change|publisher=SAGE Publications|isbn=978-0761956529}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Brown|first=Bill|author-link= |year=2006|title=The Martial Arts Cinema of the Chinese Diaspora|publisher=Hong Kong University Press|isbn=978-9622097837}}</ref>