ITF Patterns

ITF Forms

Forms, or tul (also teul or 틀) in Korean, originally called hyeong, form an important aspect of training in Taekwon-Do. They are equivalent to the kata in karate. The majority of the patterns (except Yul-Gok, Ul-Ji and Tong-Il) start with a defensive move, which emphasizes taekwon-do's defensive nature. All of the patterns start and end at the same location. This ensures that the practitioners' stances are the correct length, width, and in the proper direction.

There are 24 patterns in the official ITF "Chang Hon" syllabus; this is symbolic of the 24 hours in a day. One additional pattern, Ko-Dang (or Go-Dang), was retired/replaced by Juche in 1986 by General Choi Hong Hi. Ko-Dang and Juche are similar, and some Taekwon-do organisations have renamed Juche to Ko-Dang though most perform the newer pattern. The names of these patterns typically refer either to events in Korean history or to important people in Korean history. Elements of the patterns may also be historical references, such as the number of moves, the diagram, the way the pattern ends, and so on.

Patterns (teul) are performed in accordance with The Encyclopedia of Taekwon-Do in 15 volumes written by General Choi Hong Hi, the latest edition being from 1999 (later editions have been published, but the 1999 editions were the last General Choi Hong Hi was directly involved with). This comprehensive work contains 15 volumes with volumes 8 through 15 dedicated to the 24 patterns and containing descriptions of the pattern movements as well as pictures showing possible applications of some of the movements. There is also the book entitled The Korean Art of Self Defense (the 1999 edition, the latest used by ITF under Grandmaster Tran Trieu Quan and ITF under Grandmaster Choi, or the 2004 edition, the latest used by ITF under Chang Ung), also known as the Condensed Encyclopedia, written by General Choi Hong Hi. This is a single condensed encyclopedia of approximately 770 pages with a section dedicated to the 24 patterns.

There are also three fundamental exercises, named Saju-Jirugi (Four Direction Punch), Saju-Makgi (Four Direction Block) and Saju Tulgi (Four Direction Thrust). Saju-Jirugi and Saju-Makgi are basic defence exercises taught to beginners of the martial art. Saju Tulgi is less well known and is generally taught to 2nd Kup students just prior to Hwa-Rang. Saju Tulgi is not presented in the Condensed Encyclopedia but is present in the 15 Volume Encyclopedia (see: Volume 10, page 122.)

Colour Belt (gup) Forms

• 10th gup - no form, just basic exercises: Four Direction Punch and Block
• 9th gup - Chon-Ji (19 movements)
• 8th gup - Dan-Gun (21 movements)
• 7th gup - Do-San (24 movements)
• 6th gup - Won-Hyo (28 movements)
• 5th gup - Yul-Gok (38 movements)
• 4th gup - Joong-Gun (32 movements)
• 3rd gup - Toi-Gye (37 movements)
• 2nd gup - Hwa-Rang (29 movements)
  • Basic exercise at 2nd gup: Four Direction Thrust
• 1st gup - Choong-Moo (30 movements)

Black Belt (Dan) Patterns

• Kwang-Gae (39 movements) - 1st dan
• Po-Eun (36 movements) - 1st dan
• Ge-Baek (44 movements) - 1st dan
• Eui-Am (45 movements) - 2nd dan
• Choong-Jang (52 movements) - 2nd dan
• Juche (45  movements) - 2nd dan / Ko-Dang* (39 movements) - 2nd dan
• Sam-Il (33 movements) - 3rd dan
• Yoo-Sin (68 movements) - 3rd dan
• Choi-Yong (46 movements) - 3rd dan
• Yon-Gae (49 movements) - 4th dan
• Ul-Ji (42 movements) - 4th dan
• Moon-Moo (61 movements) - 4th dan
• So-San (72 movements) - 5th dan
• Se-Jong (24 movements) - 5th dan
• Tong-Il (56 movements) - 6th dan

Forms no longer used:

* Ko-Dang is an older form, replaced with Juche. Ko-Dang is still taught in some schools however.

U-Nam is an ITF/Chang Hon-style form that appears only in the 1959 edition of Choi Hong Hi's Tae Kwon Do Teaching Manual.

See Also

• Taekwondo Forms

References

The primary reference is:

• The Encyclopedia of Taekwon-Do

The following websites are also particularly good online references for ITF-style taekwondo:

• http://www.taekwondo.edu.sg/
• http://www.bluecottagetkd.com/
• http://www.gt-uk.net/index.php
• http://www.taekwon-do.nl/
• http://wdkd.blogspot.com/2014/04/24-hyungs-of-tae-kwon-do-reason-for-24.html
• http://www.barrettonline.org/Tae%20Kwon%20Do/ITF%20Forms.htm