Yim Wing-chun

Yim Wing-chun is a Chinese legendary character, often cited in Wing Chun legends as the first master of the martial art bearing her name. Wing-chun, though a person's name in Chinese language, translates literally to "spring chant", or may be substituted with the character for "eternal spring".

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, a Shaolin Buddhist nun and abbess, Ng Mui , reportedly fled the destruction of the Shaolin temple at the hands of the government; the temple was believed to be harbouring revolutionaries. 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. A local bully tried to force her to marry him, but she used the art to defeat him.

Yim later married Leung Bok-chau, a salt merchant, who named the art "Wing Chun Kuen" (Wing Chun Fist) after her. From there, the art passed through several men's hands before coming to Ip Man.