Until at least the
Ming dynasty (1368–1644),
fanziquan was known as '
bashanfan (; literally "8 flash tumbles"), or "8 evasive tumbles" and is attributed to Qi Jiguang Whereas in the
Qing dynasty it art is known as
BāfānMén (). According to the
bafanquan manuals, during the Ming dynasty a master named Wang Zhiyuan had been taught the boxing by a mountain wanderer in the turn of the 17th century. It is said that Wang was an accomplished warrior but had become injured in battle in a remote part of what is currently
Shandong province. There, the wanderer assisted with Wang's injuries and instructed him in the methods of
bafanquan to improve his already good martial skills. The style then passed down through various generations in the Northern provinces such as
Henan,
Hebei and
Shandong. During the
Qing dynasty, one of the most famous exponents of the style was Li Gongran from Xiong county in Hebei province. During that time he became a famed boxer, and it was claimed that "from
Nanjing to
Beijing, all
fanzi under heaven belongs to Li Gong (Grandmaster Li)". This indicated how key he was to the spread and development of the style. His son Li Erlou, and disciple Feng Zhenyuan, taught the style in
Sunning county. Their students founded many "Security Logistics Bureaus". In modern times,
fanziquan is often taught in conjunction with
chuojiao, not unlike how
xingyiquan and
baguazhang are often taught together. The routines of
chuojiao, with its kicks, wide open stances and focus on hard power, were known as
Martial Routines and those of
fanziquan, with their more compact movements combining soft and hard power, were known as
Scholarly Routines, which is why the
chuojiao/fanziquan combination is known as
Wen Wu or
Martial-Scholar. Both
fanziquan and
chuojiao are associated with the 12th century
Song dynasty general
Yue Fei, and the association between the two may date that far back. However, as a legendary figure, Yue Fei has had many martial arts attributed to him. Nonetheless, the association between the two is very old. By the mid-19th century, Zhao Canyi, a general in the failed
Taiping Rebellion, was a master of both styles. After the failure of the rebellion, Zhao went into seclusion in Raoyang, Hebei Province, where he taught
fanziquan, • The Ma Family Tongbei System of North Western China includes the Dongbei variants of
fanziquan. • The Mianzhang style (
Duanquan) was combined with Hebei
Fanzi to create the style
Mianzhang Fanzi. Throughout history, ''bafanmen's
techniques have been admired by many masters and as a result it is often recognized as Muquan'', or Mother Fist, in representing how essential it is to the
Chinese Martial Arts. == References ==