Yim Wing-chun () is a Chinese legendary character, often cited in

Wing Chun Wing Chun (Cantonese) or Yong Chun (Mandarin Chinese, Mandarin) (, lit. "singing spring") is a concept-based martial art, a form of Nanquan (martial art), Southern Chinese kung fu, and a close-quarters system of self-defense. It is a martial ...

legends as the first master of the

martial art Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the pres ...

bearing her name. Wing-chun, though a person's name in

Chinese language Chinese ( or ) is a group of languages spoken natively by the ethnic Han Chinese majority and List of ethnic groups in China, many minority ethnic groups in China, as well as by various communities of the Chinese diaspora. Approximately 1.39& ...

, translates literally to "spring chant", or may be substituted with the character for "eternal spring".Ritchie, R. (''c.'' 2007)
What's in a name?
Retrieved on 9 May 2010.

Background

Different accounts of Yim's legend exist, but the central sequence of events remains largely the same, beginning with the origin of her teacher. During the

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing, was a Manchu-led Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China and an early modern empire in East Asia. The last imperial dynasty in Chinese history, the Qing dynasty was preceded by the ...

, a Shaolin

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

nun and abbess,

Ng Mui Ng Mui ( Chinese: t , p ''Wú Méi''; Cantonese: ''Ng5 Mui4'') is said to have been one of the legendary Five Elders—survivors of the destruction of the Shaolin Temple by the Qing Dynasty. According to legend she is sai ...

(五枚師太), reportedly fled the destruction of the Shaolin temple at the hands of the government; the temple was believed to be harbouring revolutionaries.Chu, R., Ritchie, R., & Wu, Y. (1998): ''Complete Wing Chun: The definitive guide to Wing Chun's history and traditions''. Boston, MA: Tuttle Publishing. () According to one legend, after being inspired by witnessing a crane and a snake fighting, Ng Mui incorporated their movements into her style of Chinese kung fu to form a new, yet-unnamed martial art system. Ng Mui later took on a disciple, Yim Wing-chun, and passed the art on to her. Yim Wing-chun was well known for her beauty and sold

tofu or bean curd is a food prepared by Coagulation (milk), coagulating soy milk and then pressing the resulting curds into solid white blocks of varying softness: ''silken'', ''soft'', ''firm'', and ''extra (or super) firm''. It originated in Chin ...

for a living.Ing, K. (2008): ''Wing Chun warrior: The true tales of Wing Chun Kung Fu Master Duncan Leung, Bruce Lee's fighting companion''. Hong Kong: Blacksmith Books. () A local bully tried to force her to marry him, but she used the art to defeat him. Some accounts claim that Ng Mui taught Yim the art specifically for the purpose of defending herself against the man's unwanted advances.Stanford Wing Chun: History and principles of Wing Chun Kung Fu
(''c.'' 2001). Retrieved on 9 May 2010. Yim later married Leung Bok-chau, a salt merchant, who named the art "Wing Chun Kuen" (Wing Chun Fist) after her. James Yimm Lee (1972) attributes significant development of the art to Yim Wing-chun, crediting her with the invention of the '' Chi Sao'' (sticking hands) exercise.Lee, J. Y. (1972): ''Wing Chun Kung-Fu: Chinese art of self-defense'' (p. 13). Santa Clarita, CA: Ohara Publications. () From there, the art passed through several men's hands before coming to

Ip Man Ip Man (born Ip Kai-man; 1 October 1893 – 2 December 1972), also known as Yip Man, was a Chinese martial arts grandmaster. He became a teacher of the martial art of Wing Chun when he was 20. He had several students who later became martia ...

Lineage

In popular culture

''Stranger from Shaolin'' (1977) uses the character of Yim Wing-chun in an

action film The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...

genre starring Cecilia Wong Hang-Sau. The movie ''

'' (1994) loosely portrays Yim Wing-chun's life within the

genre, with

Michelle Yeoh Yeoh Choo Kheng (; born 6 August 1962), known professionally as Michelle Yeoh (), is a Malaysian actress. In a career spanning over four decades, Yeoh has appeared Michelle Yeoh filmography, in projects encompassing a wide array of genres, a ...

portraying the central character and

Donnie Yen Donnie Yen Chi-tan ( zh, c=甄子丹, p=Zhēn Zǐdān, j=, first=j; born 27 July 1963) is a Hongkongers, Hong Kong actor, filmmaker, martial artist, and action director. He is the recipient of various accolades, including three Golden Horse Fi ...

(now famous as Ip Man in four films) playing Leung Pok-to, Yim Wing-chun's childhood friend and fiancé. Erica Choi portrays Yim Wing-chun in the 1994 Hong Kong martial arts television series '' The Kung Fu Master''. In the 2010 film ''Kung Fu Wing Chun'', Yim Wing-chun was portrayed by Bai Jing and Leung Bok-chau was portrayed by Yu Shaoqun. Meng and Rudnicki (2006) have written a critical analysis of the legend surrounding Yim Wing-chun.Meng, B., & Rudnicki, S. (2006)
Misconceptions of Wing Chun
(13 October 2006). Retrieved on 28 December 2013 (

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American 501(c)(3) organization, non-profit organization founded in 1996 by Brewster Kahle that runs a digital library website, archive.org. It provides free access to collections of digitized media including web ...

Wayback Machine The Wayback Machine is a digital archive of the World Wide Web founded by Internet Archive, an American nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California. Launched for public access in 2001, the service allows users to go "back in ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yim, Wing-chun Chinese Wing Chun practitioners Martial arts school founders Qing dynasty people Female generals Women warriors Women in war in China