Myung Jae Nam (1938-1999) studied a traditional Korean martial art, referred to as Gakkisul (also called Hapkisul), during his youth. This art was very circular in nature with many spinning hitting and kicking techniques.

In 1959 Myung Jae Nam moved to Seoul where he teamed up with Hapkido master Ji Han Jae after having studied judo for a while. He later started his own school in the city of Incheon while still involved with Ji Han Jae’s organization.

When he was already an accomplished master of Hapkido, he developed a great interest in Japanese Aikido. When one uses Chinese characters the spelling for Aikido and Hapkido are identical, which isn’t strange considering the fact that both art probably share the same roots. During the 1960’s Myung Jae Nam had a few encounters with a Japanese officer and practitioner of Aikido, known to us as Yoshihiko Hirata Sensei. This sparked his interest in Aikido techniques and he began practicing the techniques he had learned and started to integrate them into his Hapkido curriculum.

This eventually even led to the point where Myung Jae Nam was the Korean representative of the main Japanese Aikido organization, the Aikikai.

In 1979 Myung Jae Nam published a book that is simply called ‘Hapkido’ (written in Chinese characters), which shows a mixture of Hapkido and Aikido techniques and it features a prominent picture of Aikido’s founder, Morihei Ueshiba.

In 1980 two of Myung Jae Nam’s students, Kim Sang Deok (1939-1996) and Ko Baek Yong (b. 1949), wrote a book called Bi Jeon Hapkido in which we see the same mixture of Hapkido and Aikido techniques.

Myung Jae Nam wrote the preface of this book and a lot of prominent students of that time are featured on the pictures.

International H.K.D. Federation

After a failed attempt in 1973 to unify the existing Hapkido organizations under the banner of the Korean Hapkido Association (K.H.A.), Myung Jae Nam started his own organization in 1974, called the Kuk Je Yeon Maeng Hap Ki Hwe, better known as the International Hapkido Federation (I.H.F.).

Even though he had started his own organization, he was still involved with the K.H.A.. However, due to problems in the K.H.A. Myung Jae Nam decided that is was better to separate from the existing organizations and to follow his own way to develop himself and his organization. In 1981, he completely went his own way with the I.H.F. and began the development of his own martial art.

1984 is known as the year in which Hankido was born. In the years that followed up to his death in August 1999, Master Myung Jae Nam worked on the development and promotion of Hankido. Hankido has a few very distinct characteristics, which make it a unique Korean martial art. Probably the most distinctive about Hankido are the so-called Muyedobeop or “dancing Hapkido” techniques and the breathing techniques of Cheonkibeop (techniques of the sky) and Jikibeop (techniques of the earth). In Muyedobeop, the twelve basic self-defense techniques of Hankido are practiced as a dance. Besides being a talented martial artist master, Myung Jae Nam was also a fervent dancer. Master Myung found that it would be easier to understand the principles that form the basis of Hankido by practicing the techniques in the relaxed way that dancing offers.

Hankido as a whole was not introduced at once. In 1988, students of the police academy were among the first who where able to witness Hankido’s breathing techniques of Cheonkibeop and Jikibeop. These techniques weren’t officially introduced until July 1989, when they were first taught in public at a seminar held at the Grand Park Hotel in Seoul. In May of that same year an international seminar was held in the town of Leidschendam, the Netherlands.

During those years the plans for the development for Hankumdo as a separate sword martial art began to take shape. Although Master Myung Jae Nam had already published a few books as well as some videos about Hankido and had traveled to other countries to demonstrate his art, it was not until the first edition of the International H.K.D. Games in 1990 that Hankido got public attention with the games being broadcasted on national television. In the next years master Myung Jae Nam visited many countries to promote Hankido, and in 1994 and 1997 the International H.K.D. Games took place again. In between those games, in 1993, the I.H.F. moved its headquarters from Seoul to the countryside of Gyeonggi-do, south of Seoul. The new headquarters consists of office space, a restaurant, a dormitory and a very large gym. The place offers enough room for students from all over the world to practice. In the 1990s Myung Jae Nam traveled the world to promote his newly created art, visiting the US, Australia, Europe and Russia. In Brazil and Chile I.H.F. schools were found by masters who had come to Korea to train under Myung Jae Nam or his students.

Hankumdo

During the third edition of the games in 1997, Hankumdo was officially introduced during the opening demonstration of the games which where then held for the first time at the new headquarters of the I.H.F. The techniques of Hankumdo had already been introduced during a 1996 series of seminars for I.H.F. instructors at the headquarters under the name of ‘Hankumdo beop’. Sword techniques in the I.H.F. curriculum were then part of the Hankido curriculum and to some extent the techniques of both systems overlap each other.

Kuksanim’s Death

In 1998 and the beginning of 1999 Master Myung Jae Nam tried to visit all of the international organizations in the US, Europe, Russia and Oceania. Due to Myung Jae Nam’s illness the trip to Europe had to be canceled.

Master Myung Jae Nam passed away on August 3, 1999. People visiting the I.H.F. headquarters cannot miss his grave, which is located there on a small hill. A statue of Kuksanim Myung Jae Nam overlooks the terrain next to the big H.K.D. gymnasium. Hankido students from all over the world pay their respects to this great person, whose martial art plays such an important role in their lives.

After his father’s death Myung Sung Kwang took over the roll as leader from the I.H.F.. The further development of the technical curriculum is now in the hands of the newly created Jae Nam Musul Won. In the years 2000, 2002, 2004 and 2007 it successfully organized four more editions of the International H.K.D. Games which all took place in Korea. Every year national games are being held at the headquarters and every month special instructor classes are conducted as well. The 8th edition of the International H.K.D. Games is scheduled to take place in the 2010 at Battle Creek, Michigan.