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Tang Soo Do

The way of the Tang hand.

A Korean striking art founded by Hwang Kee in 1945 (Moo Duk Kwan), with strong kicks and forms influenced by karate and Chinese styles. Chuck Norris learned it while serving in Korea.

Fact file

Country
South Korea
Founder / origin
Hwang Kee
Year / period
1945
Type
Striking
Main federation
World Tang Soo Do Association — WTSDA
Sources: World Moo Duk Kwan / Encyclopaedia Britannica

History

Tang Soo Do is a Korean martial art founded by Hwang Kee, who opened the Moo Duk Kwan school in Seoul in 1945. The name, "the way of the Tang (Chinese) hand", is the Korean reading of the same old characters once used for karate.

It combines karate-like hand techniques with strong Korean kicks. It spread to the United States through American servicemen who trained in Korea, including Chuck Norris.