Editing Tai chi (section)

== History ==
[[File:Chen Wanting.jpg|thumb|A statue of [[Chen Wangting]], an early pioneer of tai chi]]

=== Early development ===
Tai chi's formative influences came from practices undertaken in [[Taoist]] and [[Buddhist]] monasteries, such as [[Wudang Mountains|Wudang]], [[Shaolin Monastery|Shaolin]], and The Thousand Year Temple in [[Henan]].<ref name=":2">Wile, Douglas. 2016. ‘''Fighting Words: Four New Document Finds Reignite Old Debates in Taijiquan Historiography''’, Martial Arts Studies 4, 17–35.</ref> The early development of tai chi proper is connected with Henan's Thousand Year Temple and a nexus of nearby villages: Chen Village, Tang Village, Wangbao Village, and Zhaobao Town. These villages were closely connected, shared an interest in the martial arts and many went to study at Thousand Year Temple (which was a syncretic temple with elements from the [[three teachings]]).<ref name=":2" /> {{clarify-span|New|reason=New from over 300 years ago???|date=November 2023}} documents from these villages, mostly dating to the 17th century, are some of the earliest sources for the practice of tai chi.<ref name=":2" />

Some traditionalists claim that tai chi is a purely Chinese art that comes from ancient [[Taoism]] and [[Confucianism]].<ref name=":1" /> These schools believe that tai chi theory and practice were formulated by Taoist monk [[Zhang Sanfeng]] in the 12th century. A research project conducted by the China Sports Commission determined as much, and Wu Tunan also examined Zhang Sanfeng’s contribution to Tai Chi in his book “A Study of Tai Chi”.{{cn|date=April 2025}} These stories are often filled with legendary and [[hagiographical]] content and lack historical support.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />

In March 2007, the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles recognized Chenjiagou in Wen County, Jiaozuo City, Henan Province as the birthplace of Chinese Tai Chi. In August 2007, after further detailed investigation and verification of various opinions in society, the national martial arts department recognized Chenjiagou in Wen County as the "birthplace of Chinese martial arts Tai Chi."{{cn|date=April 2025}}

Modern historians point out that the earliest reference indicating a connection between [[Zhang Sanfeng]] and martial arts is actually a 17th-century piece called ''Epitaph for Wang Zhengnan'' (1669), composed by [[Huang Zongxi]] (1610–1695).<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /> Aside from this single source, the other claims of connections between tai chi and Zhang Sanfeng appeared no earlier than the 19th century.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=Henning |first=Stanley |year=1994 |title=Ignorance, Legend and Taijiquan |url=http://www.nardis.com/~twchan/henning.html |url-status=dead |journal=Journal of the Chen Style Taijiquan Research Association of Hawaii |volume=2 |issue=3 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100101075956/http://www.nardis.com/~twchan/henning.html |archive-date=2010-01-01 |access-date=2009-11-23}}</ref><ref name=":1" /> According to Douglas Wile, "there is no record of a Zhang Sanfeng in the [[Song Dynasty]] (960–1279), and there is no mention in the [[Ming]] (1368–1644) histories or hagiographies of Zhang Sanfeng of any connection between the immortal and the martial arts."<ref name=":1" />

Another common theory for the origin of tai chi is that it was created by [[Chen Wangting]] (1580–1660) while living in Chen Village (陳家溝), Henan.<ref name="MarkChen2004">{{Cite book |last=Chen |first=Mark |title=Old frame Chen family Taijiquan |publisher=North Atlantic Books (Distributed to the book trade by Publishers Group West) |year=2004 |isbn=978-1-55643-488-4 |location=Berkeley, Calif.}}</ref> The other four contemporary traditional tai chi styles (Yang, Sun, Wu and Wu/Hao) trace their teachings back to Chen village in the early 1800s.{{sfn|Wile|1996}}<ref>{{Cite book |last=Wile |first=Douglas |title=T'ai-chi Touchstones: Yang Family Secret Transmissions |publisher=Sweet Ch'i Press |year=1983 |isbn=978-0-912059-01-3}}</ref>

[[Yang Luchan]] (1799–1872), the founder of the popular [[Yang-style tai chi|Yang style]], trained with the Chen family for 18 years before he started to teach in [[Beijing]], which strongly suggests that his work was heavily influenced by [[Chen-style tai chi|the Chen family art]]. Martial arts historian Xu Zhen claimed that the tai chi of Chen Village was influenced by the ''Taizu changquan'' style practiced at nearby [[Shaolin Monastery]], while [[Tang Hao]] thought it was derived from a treatise by [[Ming dynasty]] general [[Qi Jiguang]], ''[[Jixiao Xinshu]]'' ("New Treatise on Military Efficiency"), which discussed several martial arts styles including ''Taizu changquan''.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jarek Szymanski |date=1999 |title=Origins and Development of Taijiquan |url=http://www.chinafrominside.com/ma/taiji/TJQorigins.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160617015457/http://www.chinafrominside.com/ma/taiji/TJQorigins.html |archive-date=2016-06-17 |access-date=2016-08-20 |website=Chinafrominside.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Jarek Szymanski |date=2000 |title=Taijiquan – Brief Analysis of Chen Family Boxing Manuals |url=http://www.chinafrominside.com/ma/taiji/chenboxingmanuals.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161115172616/http://www.chinafrominside.com/ma/taiji/chenboxingmanuals.html |archive-date=2016-11-15 |access-date=2016-08-20 |website=Chinafrominside.com}}</ref>

=== Standardization ===
[[File:Taoist Tai Chi demo Push.jpg|thumb|Taoist practitioners practising]]
Under the Nationalist government, the Central Guo Shu Institute ({{lang|zh-Hant|中央國術館}}) in Chongqing under the direction of Chen Pan-ling ({{lang|zh-Hant|陳泮嶺}}) in 1936 created a unified form combining elements of Chen, Yang, Sun and Wu forms. This was called Guo Shu Taiji ({{lang|zh-Hant|國術太極}}). After the retreat of the Nationalists to Taiwan in 1949, Chen Pan-ling continued to propagate the form where it is now called 99 Taiji. This frame formed the structure of [[Wang Shujin|Wang Shu-jin]]'s taiji form.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Smith |first=Robert |title=Chinese Boxing Masters and Methods |publisher=Blue Snake Books |year=1990 |isbn=978-1-55643-085-5 |pages=68-72}}</ref>

In 1956, the Chinese government sponsored the Chinese Sports Committee (CSC), which brought together four ''wushu'' teachers to truncate the Yang family hand form to [[24-form tai chi chuan|24 postures]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Bluestein|first=Jonathan|author-link=Jonathan Bluestein|year=2024|title=Martial Arts Politics Explained|isbn=979-8335564984}}</ref> This was an attempt to standardize tai chi for ''[[Wushu (sport)|wushu]]'' tournaments as they wanted to create a routine that would be much less difficult to learn than the classical 88 to 108 posture solo hand forms.

Another 1950s form is the "97 movements combined tai chi form", which blends Yang, Wu, Sun, Chen, and Fu styles.

In 1976, they developed a slightly longer demonstration form that would not require the traditional forms' memory, balance, and coordination. This became the "Combined 48 Forms" that were created by three ''wushu'' coaches, headed by Men Hui Feng. The combined forms simplified and combined classical forms from the original Chen, Yang, Wu, and Sun styles. Other competitive forms were designed to be completed within a six-minute time limit.

In the late 1980s, CSC standardized more competition forms for the four major styles as well as combined forms. These five sets of forms were created by different teams, and later approved by a committee of ''wushu'' coaches in China. These forms were named after their style: the "Chen-style national competition form" is the "56 Form". Also standardized was the "[[42-form tai chi|42 Form]]", also known as the "Competition Form", which combined movements from multiple styles.

In the 11th [[Asian Games]] of 1990, ''wushu'' was included as an item for competition for the first time with the 42 Form representing tai chi. The [[International Wushu Federation]] (IWUF) applied for ''wushu'' to be part of the [[Olympic Games]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=October 17, 2006 |title=Wushu likely to be a "specially-set" sport at Olympics |url=http://en.olympic.cn/08beijing/bocog/2006-10-17/945504.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070311001132/http://en.olympic.cn/08beijing/bocog/2006-10-17/945504.html |archive-date=2007-03-11 |access-date=2007-04-13 |publisher=[[Chinese Olympic Committee]]}}</ref>
Tai chi was added to the [[UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists]] in December of 2020, nominated by China.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Taijiquan |url=https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/taijiquan-00424 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201218080430/https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/taijiquan-00424 |archive-date=2020-12-18 |access-date=2021-03-06 |publisher=UNESCO Culture Sector}}</ref>