Taekwon-Do is a national martial art associated with the spirit and soul of the Korean nation.

The Korean ancestors trained their physical strength for national defence while leading a diligent working life throughout their long national history, and in the course of that left behind such sports and cultural legacies as Taekwon-Do.

Historical root of national martial arts

The Koreans developed the primitive martial arts originating in primitive society into national martial arts as they formed a nation.

As he built Ancient Joson (early 30th century BC-108 BC) as the first state in the history of Korea centring on Pyongyang and established a military organization within the state machinery, Tangun, founding father of the Korean nation, ensured that martial arts were created and disseminated as a combat method to arm its troops.

In the period of Koguryo (277 BC-AD 668), the martial art style of hitting and beating the opponent with bare hands and preventing the opponent’s attack was called subak and widely encouraged.

Later, with the passage of time subak was renamed thaekkyon and also encouraged in the period of the feudal Joson dynasty (1392-1910).

A martial art of attacking the opponent or defending oneself by using all parts of the body including hands and feet, thaekkyon has powerful techniques that suit the constitutional characters of the Koreans with strong back and legs.

The power of thaekkyon is evidenced by an old record of Korea, which says that a warrior killed a tiger by kicking it with his foot.

The content and methods of thaekkyon are detailed in “Muyedobothongji” (Illustrated Book of Martial Arts), a book published at the end of the 18th century.

Pyongyang thaekkyon was the cream of thaekkyon and the mainstream of the development of the martial art.

At that time Pyongyang thaekkyon practitioners were called Pyongyang nalpharam (nimble persons).

They played an important role in defending the country, always demonstrating valour in the battles against foreign aggressors.

Orthodox martial arts which once faded away into history

The Korean orthodox martial arts were trampled down by the vicious moves of the Japanese imperialists to obliterate the martial arts of the Korean nation during the period of their military occupation of Korea between 1905 and 1945.

The Japanese imperialists destroyed and plundered many national classics related to Korean martial arts including "Muyedobothongji" and tried to break the continuity of the national martial arts of Korea by enacting all sorts of fascist laws and arresting and killing a large number of patriotic martial artists.

Korean feature film “Pyongyang Nalpharam” is based on historical fact about it.

Once, a Russian news agency said that "Muyedobothongji" is a precious Korean national heritage element, reporting on the publication, dissemination and storage of the book and the fact that one of its several looted copies is now kept as a national treasure at the Grand People’s Study House.

Now, visitors to the Grand People’s Study House in Central District, Pyongyang, can see the date of its donation, October 30 1952, on a page of “Muyedobothongji”.

President Kim Il Sung convened a conference of scientists in April 1952 when the life of the nation was at stake in the flames of the Fatherland Liberation War (June 25 1950-July 27 1953). At the meeting he instructed that national classics should be collected and arranged on a nationwide scale in order to inherit the national cultural heritage and took a revolutionary measure to this end.

In 1952 when the war was going on, a copy of “Muyedobothongji” was unearthed in the Phyongan Provincial area and donated to the then National Central Library, with the result that historical facts related to the orthodox martial art of the resourceful and intrepid Korean nation were handed down to posterity.

Taekwon-Do, national martial art

The techniques and methods of the national martial arts created and developed by the Koreans generation after generation have been further developed and enriched.

Choe Hong Hui named the national martial art he had studied and developed with all his heart "Taekwon-Do" in April 1955 and worked hard to disseminate it to many countries of the world. After founding the International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) on March 22 1966, he served as its president till the end of his life.

While living in exile abroad, he visited Pyongyang several times, met President Kim Il Sung and Chairman Kim Jong Il and fulfilled his heart’s desire for the development of the national martial art.

Now, Taekwon-Do has widely been spread across the world as a martial art contributing to the development of human culture with its uniquely good qualities and charm.

It is a martial art for attack and defence using the hands, feet and all other parts of the body strengthened through intense physical training and mental cultivation without weapons.

Taekwon-Do's "tae" means heel, “kwon" means fist and "do" means mental training, with the name meaning high physical ability using foot and hand techniques and great mental strength.

The DPRK has laid a solid foundation for promoting and widely encouraging the national martial art. Research and educational institutions and bases for disseminating Taekwon-Do techniques have been built across the country to develop it and provide everyone with better opportunities to learn it.

The Taekwon-Do Hall and the Taekwon-Do Holy House symbolizing the dignity and pride of the mother country of Taekwon-Do have been built in Pyongyang, attracting many Taekwon-Do experts and fans at home and abroad.

According to the unified system of the state for training reserves and disseminating to the masses, Taekwon-Do is taught to students at universities and schools across the country. And Taekwon-Do techniques are widely spread at factories, enterprises and farms to popularize the national martial art.

Taekwon-Do is also widely disseminated across the world.

There are national Taekwon-Do associations diffusing the Korean martial art and countless numbers of Taekwon-Doists in many countries and Taekwon-Do championships are held on a worldwide scale.

Today nationwide programmes are undertaken in the DPRK to develop the Korean martial art.