Nan Dao

[CaptinPickAxe]

What southern styles use this weapon? how does its movement differ from the Northern Broadsword? Just a simple question.

This thread will self destruct in 48hrs

[Ben Gash]

We all ask this question periodically, and no-one knows it. I have seen a Hop Gar website that shows them using it, but they're just doing standard Dao postures.

[saolim]

As far as I know, the nan dao was especially designed for the modern Wushu routine as we know it today. The design is based on several models of swords used in the past.

[Shaolinlueb]

Originally posted by saolim
As far as I know, the nan dao was especially designed for the modern Wushu routine as we know it today. The design is based on several models of swords used in the past.

thats what I thought too.

[CaptinPickAxe]

interesting...

so basically its so martial artist can feel like the blonde guy from Final Fantasy 7? So much for asthetics.

[ZhouJiaQuan]

almost, its basically so wushu guys can feel like that...

btw is ff7 the one with the magician guy that keeps falling over or is that ff9?

[CaptinPickAxe]

I think that is nine...its definitly not ff7.

What is this? http://www.wle.com//products/W262.html
are they just making swords for looks now days?

[Ben Gash]

It's what it says it is, a ghost head sword. CLF has it (although I've never seen it). I assume in application it's similar to a 9 ring executioners knife.

[Ben Gash]

Incidentally, I was reading a book this week on the armies aof the Ming and Qing, and appaerently a sword very similar to the Nan dao was popular between 1600 and 1850.

[Shaolinlueb]

Originally posted by Ben Gash
Incidentally, I was reading a book this week on the armies aof the Ming and Qing, and appaerently a sword very similar to the Nan dao was popular between 1600 and 1850.

interesting. in the movie deadly melody wiht yian biao (sp?) he uses a sword that looks like the nan dao.

[Southern Fist]

Contemporary Southern Wushu practitioners use this broadsword. As the name implies Nan(south) Dao (sword).
Classical southern stylist do not used it much. If they did it would be village styles or military. The design comes from executioners sword for beheading.
The difference in technique from northern is the Nandao is used for chopping,large slashing moves. In the north broadswords you use it more for slashing, stabbing, cutting.

The ghost head sword is and executioners style sword as well.
It can be played the same as the Nandao.

In my opinion this Sword was popular in the early 20th century due to a group of martial artist who would make raids against forgein soldiers camps. as mentioned as executitioners against those forgein soldiers.

[GeneChing]

There are two blades associated with southern styles, the nan dao as mentioned above and the kan dao (kan means "chop"). Also jiu-huan dao are common (jiu huan means nine-ring - a common variation is the the jiu-gou (nine hook) shown above. (A ghost head (or gui tao dao) typically has a different dorsal pattern than the one listed above - more like a cloud or wave pattern with only a few rings. That really should be called a jiu-gou.)

All of these dao are used more commonly by the southern styles. I'm not going to address the nine-ring/hook or ghost head right now because those are much different. Let just focus on the kan and nan. What makes them different from the standard dao is that they have a broader blade, a longer handle (what we might call a hand-and-a-half handle) and a ring pommel. Generally shorter, wider blades were used for close combat (like on ships) in contrast to longer curved blades used by horseman (like shamishir or "scimitar"). This certainly falls in line with southern CMA tactics. Also wider blades were used when the sowrd steel wasn't as sophisticated, like in Roman swords. This fall in line with the southern cultures, which were more tribal (like Yunnan) and more cured in their sword forging. We've distinguised our kan dao as being curved and our nan dao as being straight, but that's not set in stone. Like the ghost head example above, you'll see variations in the terms simply because it's not necessarily standardized (or well researched).

I've just started working with kan/nan dao in O-Mei style and xingyi sword sparring and I'm finding it quite interesting. The contrast is subtle, but logical. I keep feeling like I'm in too close because all of the sword I've studied previous was longer. But in fact, it is a closer combat weapon than the common dao. In fighting means you use your left hand more and can do things like hiding the sword behind you. You can really tell the difference when someone is using the wrong type of sword for the form - probably the most glaring and common example is when someone uses a common dao for taiji dao. If you really understand the weapon, the variation in properties must affect the way you use it. It's like the difference between how you drive an SUV and a compact. Unfortunately, much of this is getting muddled now because of the interpretive nature of forms practice. Few people really understand how to cut or fight with a sword - it's quite different than with a stick. padded swords will give you a sense of sparring, but you lose the sentiment du fer which is critical.

[David Jamieson]

isn't "dao" or "do" meaning "knife? and not sword?

??

???

lol

just sayin....

p.s Gene, nice reference to "Giving the Sword" man! You must have a renewed interest in fencing? or at least it's terminology?

[Ironwind]

Would the Butterfly Blades of Wing Chun be an example ofthe Nan Doa.

[MasterKiller]

Originally posted by Ironwind
Would the Butterfly Blades of Wing Chun be an example ofthe Nan Doa.

No.