Tai Chi Chuan or Taijiquan - Pinyin versus Wade Giles

tai chi chuan taijiquan Dec 26, 2011

I'm making the switch.

When I began teaching the internal arts, I considered whether to write "Tai Chi" or "Taiji."

On mainland China, Taiji (or Taijiquan) is the accepted translation style, known as pinyin.

Tai Chi (or T'ai Chi Ch'uan) is the Wade-Giles method of translation, developed by two men (Wade and Giles).

In 1997, I chose to use Tai Chi because that is the spelling most commonly known. That's the spelling you saw in newspapers and magazines such as T'ai Chi magazine. When I advertised my classes, I wanted the general public to see the ad and understand what "Tai Chi" meant. I didn't think they would understand that "Taiji" was the same thing.

It was purely a marketing decision, even though I knew that "serious" practitioners of the art used the term Taiji.

In recent months, I've started using both terms in my writing, and you might still see a Tai Chi pop up for search engine reasons, but for the most part, I'm changing the way I spell the art to Taijiquan, or Taiji.

My main reason for this change is this -- I no longer try to attract local middle-aged or elderly people for classes. The art that I practice and teach is not necessarily geared toward people who want a slow motion exercise for health and meditation. This isn't your grandmother's tai chi. In fact, that audience began falling as soon as I switched from Yang style to Chen style back in 1998. Chen style is much more athletic, contains more fa-jing, and it just isn't what elderly folks want to practice.

In the end, it doesn't matter what you call it -- Tai Chi or Taiji. What matters is that you practice. It's an amazing martial art, no matter how you spell it.

--by Ken Gullette

Try Two Weeks Free and Get Step-by-Step Training in Taiji, Xingyi and Bagua from Basic to Advanced Skills with No Mystical Mumbo-Jumbo

More than 850 Video Lessons and Downloadable pdf documents -- and You Get It All During Your Free Trial!

Click this Button to Learn More and Watch a Video!

Okay! Let Me See More!

Ken Gullette's Internal Fighting Arts

Tai Chi Chuan or Taijiquan - Pinyin versus Wade Giles

Try Two Weeks Free and Get Step-by-Step Training in Taiji, Xingyi and Bagua from Basic to Advanced Skills with No Mystical Mumbo-Jumbo

Author - Instructor

Stay connected with news and updates!

Two Step