well, i still don’t see a problem with using the chinese names for techniques and stances etc. Tan Sau for example in wing chun (one explained) is much easier to keep saying than: palm up dispersing the energy hand all the time
Well, of course ot other people i would say Moy Sifu as my teacher, but to him it’s just Sifu… the same with anything else Tse Sigong, Yip Tai Sigong etc. when talking about them, but just Sigong and Tai Sigong in person It’s like saying Grandad instead of Grandad Smith all the time lol
I think other people would call you Master as being polite and showing respect for your skill, even your students maybe, but you don’t need to do it yourself… especially when just having a chat!
No, my point was more in reference to learning countless names for stances, forms, etc. A personal title isn’t so awkward because in the cases of Si-Gung and Si-Tai Gung, the Chinese title is more accurate than its English equivalent.
I guess it depends on how close your ties are to Chinese teachers. Like our teacher speaks very little English at all so it’s a good idea to learn the Chinese names. There’s also still a lot of people who have close ties to Hong Kong, Taiwan, or mainland China. I think when you have this much contact with a Chinese speaking community it’s a good idea to attempt to learn something about the language.
While I don’t think that you necessarily need to know all the Chinese names for techniques it can definitely add another level to you understanding…so I guess I think it’s worthwhile. As for the title Sifu…what would be the equivalent expression in English? Sifu is composed of two characters one for teacher and one for father. I guess we could say teacher but then the other meaning is lost. The term Sifu means teacher but also it represents someone who is skilled in a trade and thought of highly in the community. I just don’t think you could represent this with English because we don’t have such a concise way to represent this in English.
It’s like saying Grandad instead of Grandad Smith all the time lol