Taekwondo
“Only that one who knows where he comes from, knows where he goes to!”
A Korean proverb
Introduction
Taekwondo is a young martial art with an ancient history. In its modern form it was systemitized by General Choi Hong Hi in 1954-55. At that time it was given the name Taekwondo. Ever since the remote past man has been anxious to develop his martial mastery.That was his way to make his living and to defend himself against enemies – other men and the wild animals. Gradually that striving led to the formation of martial arts. Their development continues to nowadays as well as human desire for self-perfection. Although Taekwondo was formed in its modern style during the middle of the 20th century it was natural continuation of the evolution of the Korean martial arts and to be more precise – of the traditional Taek Kyon (its characteristic high kicks are the basic of Taekwondo techniques) and Subak. That’s the reason why we find it necessary to trace the history of the Korean martial arts back to their origin.
Martial Art and Korea in Ancient Times
The foundation of Korea is dated back to the year 2333 B.C. At that time the country was known as Ko Chosun. Since then the Koreans practised sport games developing martial mastery as fights with stone weapons (spear and knife), kicks and hits, throwing, swimming. These skills were developed in the tribal states Chosun, Puyo and Chinhan. It is considered that one of the most important requirements for the national leaders of those days has been the martial mastery.