Lin Pin Zhang
Praying Mantis Shifu
The information presented in this chart was collected from different sources -see Bibliography-, therefore the romanizations in Pinyin according to the Mandarin pronunciation of the characters sometimes is not available. If you find any mistakes or inaccuracies please contact me.
His name is also romanized as:
Lin Pin Jang / Lin Ping Jiang / Lim Poom Chang / Lim Pom Chang (Korean pronunciation).
The Korean branch use a different character for "Zhang" to write shifu Lin Pin Zhang's name. This character "Zhang" should have a jade radical (yu or wang) instead of the hill (fu) radical on the left. According to the Korean sources this character was only used in Manchu male names. The sources in China write shifu's Lin Pin Zhang name as writen in this web page.
Born in 1910, shifu Lin Pin Zhang was student of shifu Ji Chung Ting (Mei Hua Tang Lang Quan) and he also learnt Tai Ji Tang Lang Quan style under shifu Sun Yuan Chang.
According to the Korean oral tradition, shifu Lin Pin Zhang was a bannerman (Manchu), as his master shifu Ji Chung Ting.
Shifu Lin Pin Zhang emigrated from Da lian (Shan Dong Province) to Korea in the late 40's (or early 50's). He first taught in Chuncheon (Kangwondo), in a tent apparently. Then he was invited to Seoul by the "Chinese Resident's Association" to teach and he accepted as post as physical education teacher for the Chinese Primary school in Myongdong. A guan was set up within the embassy initally and this was the beginning of mantis teaching in Seoul. Other Korean sources mention that he had a school, but sometimes at the Chinese embassy (Chung Gook Tessa Gwon).
There are rumors circulating among Tang Lang Quan community that shifu Ji Chun Ting brought to Korea a Tang Lang Quan manuscript which was written by shifu Jiang Hua Long and handed by his shifu Ji Chung Ting. If you have access to this manuscript please contact me !!
There is conflicting information about the date shifu Lin Pin Zhang passed away, some of them stating 1983 or 1984, but the actual date of him passing away was in December 1982.
Page Updated: 1st May 2005.
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Fernando Blanco Dopazo .