Ganxi Dong, a small village hidden deep in the mountains of Tianzhu in central China, is gaining worldwide attention for its unusually skilled residents. Apparently, everyone who lives in the self-sustaining village is a martial arts expert!
The Dong people, one of the 56 recognised ethnic minorities in China, pride themselves on having shunned the outside world in favor of local tradition. Every villager is well-versed in the art of kung fu, and each person is pursuing a different style of ancient Chinese martial arts. They use a range of weapons, including sticks, pitchforks, and fists.
Locals have two theories about their unusual situation—some claim that the area suffered regular heavy attacks from wild animals that would kill livestock and injure the villagers. To combat the problem, certain families had to pick a strong youth to create, develop and learn martial arts. They modeled their actions on the moves of dragons, snakes, tigers and leopards. As each family trained in a different type of movement, different strains of kung fu were invented.
Others say early residents were frequently pillaged by their neighbors. To protect themselves, they invited martial arts experts to their village to teach them the art of combat.
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