well, it's nice to watch, but i think you all are missing the key word here. It's a DANCE, not a martial art. It's an art, but not a combat art.

i want to see more of the korean weapon arts. it seems they are so overshadowed by TKD or even taekkyun. this sword dance was amazing... GIMME MORE!!!!!

Beauty, grace and danger. What a combination! I was relieved to see that the woman got to show that the swords were capable of cutting.

I noticed that, too. I was completely enamored by this demonstration. It's quite possibly my favorite video on youtube.

Very beautiful. The dance was very graceful and powerful. I love seeing women wielding swords!

Amazingly graceful, who cares where it's from or what kind of steel she's using. She commands the swords but they are her partners in the dance. You can almost see her flying around a battle cutting down all the men who are too enamoured with her beauty to see her as a threat.

every new piece of culture i see helps me feel more alive. thanks for sharing this beauty!

very graceful... so beautiful you forget she's swining two lethal weapons around her. Her poise is very admirable.

I recently posted an excerpt from Wikipedia about the two-sword Korean dance. I don't see it here now; perhaps it was removed for being too long. You' ll can easily look it up for yourselves. A lot of history as well as the sword -smithing in ancient times and today.

Absolutely. This girl is definitely more then just a dancer. :) I also love how in both sequences, she does a cut and then cuts the top part in half before it falls.

Why don't you just all enjoy this great performance? ... I really like her style :)

wow...beautiful...her moves are so smooth..and can flow really well...like the wind or water. i like this.

First time I've seen a sword dance. She was really graceful with her movements and sword control. Really well done. The music reminded me of soul calibur for some reason lol.

"Geommu...a traditional [two] sword dance practiced in Korea. Geommu is performed with special costume, dance moves, and music. The dance is known for its grace in performance. Extra emphasis is placed on the movement of the costuming, notably the sleeves, in harmony with the movements of the dancer."...Wikipedia

It looks easy when she does it. I bet I could do it too-if by 'it' you mean possibly killing myself or humiliating.myself utterly

quite simply one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen.

How beautifully elegant. That was amazing! I envy her grace and control which is almost fantastical. Sorry, I'm getting excited, but that was really cool!

Most elegant and beautiful to boot! Sword-Dancer forever!

I have a friend who makes all kinds of swords for use in movies and television for a living. According to him the whole mystique surrounding Japanese swords is blown way out of proportion, just because they're exotic and people like Japan in general. Japanese swords are really not that different from swords from other Asian countries with long histories. That makes sense -- after all, it's all based on practical experience gained in real battles, and that's the same everywhere.

This is truly wonderful to see, it is a balance of grace and power.

Beautiful! And that skirt is gorgeous; makes your movements that much more exaggerated (in a good way!)

Very beautiful. I rarely use that word so this is beyond a compliment of her abilities and beauty.

Nothing short of pure beauty, both blades and woman

She is moving with much grace, it was beautiful. Thanks for the video, waveman618!

OMG I LOVE HER OUTFIT ^__^ this is beautiful YAY

damn man, tis is not only a dance, this is pure martial arts ! this girl would be a great asassin in a movie ! great stuff man...

Now THAT'S sword dancing in my opinion! Fluid and graceful, but also has some serious combative probability!

Mute the sound and throw some psy-trance over it. It's gorgeous

That was really nice to watch. I agree with an earlier comment that the overblown music takes away from the first part of the performance.

This performance shows Haidong Gumdo - Korean Swordsmanship since 1700 years..sword dance is one discipline in competitions. Clothes are adapted from traditional Korean Hanbok

Why is it that people complain about who stole whatever from them? It's freaking 2010, for man's sake. Everyone's got influences and steal from others. It's not a crime. That's the way things evolve. And this is beautiful. Her cuts are amazing. I know of a lot of black belts who wouldn't do a single cut.

The Korean generals used long swords. Some were so long that historians believe that they weren't used for warfare. Admiral Yi Sunshin's sword is one example. There were short swords during the Chosun Dynasty, but they were used by soldiers of lower rank.

First song is called 'Yason' from the game 'Magna Carta: Crimson Stigmata', a game based heavily from Korean influences (main artist for the game is Korean).

It's a specific kind of sword. From wikipedia a sword longer than 2 shaku (approx. 2 feet or more). Shorter swords of the same variety were called wakizashi and the dagger was the tanto. It was most definitely a specific type of sword.

Buddhism first arrived in Japan in the 6th century from the Southern part of the kingdom of Baekje on the Korean peninsula. The Baekje king sent the Japanese emperor a picture of the Buddha and some sutras. Japanese aristocrats built Buddhist statues and temples in the capital at Nara, and then in the later capital at Heian (now Kyoto)

It's more than art. It's submission to the blade (or blades in this case), and the blade accepting your intention. It's more than just wielding a piece of metal and she does it well.

I think this lady is really beautiful! I see class in her thats hard to find in most woman these days! She seems very unique, somewhat traditional, and just very pleasant to look at! Two Thumbs Up! lol~

She's amazing! Beautiful marcial moves...

It's almost like Ballroom dancing, except cooler.

Her name is Yoonjakyoung, and she is famous Korean traditional fencing(Geomdo)teacher and actress^^

To think...back in the day....when we this was used for real....god i wish i was back there to witness the entirety and epicness of the culture...

It's a bgm of a korean video game- "Magna Carta: Crimson Stigmata", the name of the song is "Theme of Yason"..maybe.

shes beautiful. and her traditional looking outfit is gorgeous. putting swords in her hands just makes me want to marry her even more so.

Can't imagine how hard it must be to execute the Kata with that highly restrictive & heavy dress on, Yet she manages it with grace and amazing speed.

@MsDjessa So true right there... People don't realize that they had their own swords even before even coming in contact with one and another. Katana and Hwando existed even before knowing each other's existence.

This is a demonstration of Gum Mu (sword dance) and the performer is a member of the Korea Haedong Kumdo Association. Thank you

The sword of traditional Korea is double-edged and straight. This poured iron in the mold and was manufactured. On the other hand, The katana forges the iron sand beating. A peculiar manufacturing method was invented because there was no coke in Japan unlike Korea and China. The curving sword made in Korea : now. It is produced in the technology told by Japan in the 16th century.

anyway to get a highquality video of this? Fascinating the way her dress comliments her sword dance with every turn and fold.

Holy shit! I dont know much about the sword dance, it looks like any form of dancing to me, very graceful, very balanced, very aesthetic, but what I DO know is that to cut those reeds like that takes a HUGE amount of skill!

Thanks sum1uknoh for the info on "kisaengs! In 16th century Thailand, semi-legendary queen Suriyothai is said to have fought on elephant back with pikes & other weapons; women & girls are well represented in Southern India's ancient art of Kalaripayatu with its array of blade weapons. In early medieval Europe, Viking women regularly handled swords. I would expect the same for Korea, with its long history of sword-based arts.

@Maglevspiritualgeek Actually, this is gummu (sword dance). Miss Yoon, Ja-kyung is performing the demonstration & she is a member of the Korea Haedong Kumdo Association.

Delightful. I liked the music and enjoyed the dance. Interesting, there are "sword dances" in so many different cultures.

I'm pretty much in love with her dress.

The Korean gum that she is using is essentially the same as a Japanese katana (single edged 2 handed sabre) barring slight differences in edge geometry and consruction. This is a demo of Gum Mu (sword dance) as dictated by the Korean sword art Haedong Gumdo. Thank you

All those people that are saying Korea borrowed Japanese culture, Please do remember that Japan once borrowed Korean culture too back when people from Korea and China immigrated to Japan. Every Culture shares with other cultures and there is no need to fight over which is what, Just be proud of your own culture. I love both Koreans and Japanese ^_^ Both are cool in their own ways !

The point isn't to be effective in combat, the point is to look good. It's called a sword dance for a reason, y'know.

Amazing and beautiful...wish the video was sharper. She deserves at least 1080p

I think I've read sometime before about her. There it said that she practiced like 8 hours at day since she was still a girl. She seems to have an innate grace for this... thanks for uploading the video, waveman618!!

She isn't going to be using katanas as she is performing a traditional Korean segment. The Gum (swords) she uses are probably made specifically for her as is the tradition with Korean battle arts. The work she is displaying can be identified as Ssang Geom, typified by the use of 2 swords. Hope this helps.

"Not all curved swords used in East Asia are Japanese, nor can it be said that all styles of curved swords found in East Asia are the result of Japanese influence. The curved sword originated in the Won Dynasty rather than in Japan. Also, curved Mongolian swords were used even earlier, before being adopted by Japan. Going further back, a curved bronze sword was excavated at the Byongmayonggang, the tomb of the Emperor of Chin." - History of Steel in Eastern Asia

simply the best dual sword dance

Very Good Video!!! I can see her true training during years and well-developed techniques, Excellent!!!

It is haidong gumdo. And she does know the combat forms too...she just tends to win the dance part more then the combat part and as such most of the videos you see of he is for the dance. You do see a bit of her cutting at the end...but I have yet to see any videos of her sparring.

If you look at a gum's cross section vs a katana, it will be different. The profile shape looks the same, but how thick the sword is at various points in the blade are different...hence they are different swords.

Why can't we all just stfu and enjoy the video because whatever sword she is using, whatever clothes shes wearing and whatever race she is, the fact remains that the dance is cool. why post such hateful comments?

It's not just about how the sword is worn. If the sword geometry is different, even if the profile of the blade is the same, it is a vastly different sword.

Wow. That was beautiful. I love her dress also. But it's not the traditional style. It's a more old style and new style mixed together. And yes it's Korean. ^_^ Beautiful.

Wow that's amazing. Thank you for sharing! I always love seeing different cultural traditions.

Tis quite beautiful. Excellent poise, and very graceful.

While dancing has never really managed impressed me for long, since I have the nasty habit of dissecting movement patterns and stances, which stops any majesty I have for choreography in its tracks, I can honestly say that this person has talent and dedication. Their movements are slow and deliberate, even when the pace picks up, and the amount of time it must take to master wrist movements and sword grips so that the blade doesn't touch their bodies must be days, even weeks. Good job.

I'm fairly certain several European countries have their own sword dances, although admittedly they don't involve swinging the sword around or chopping mats.

beauty, grace, and lethality

They should make an RPG using her as the main character. That would be the best game ever!!!

What the hell is up with all the stupid comments in here? This is beautiful art no matter how you look at it, no matter where it originally came from. So stop trashing eachothers cultures. Theyre all beautiful,and they all have their ragged edges. If youre going to compete then please do so by improving yourselves without bashing on eachother. Anyone who tries to prove their superiority with violence or disrespect is nothing but a caveman. In other words inferiour.

Japan and korea are very alike. Both are very close to each other, and have had many contacts in the past. However during the three korean kingdoms. The baekje empire was being overthrown. But with its connections to Japan, Japan aided them and gave the noble families homes in Japan. Later on these noble korean families gained political power, (many clans derive from this korean empire, a famous one, the Kudura clan). It is also most likely the Japanese culure has mixed with korean blood.

first country in korea BC2333 first country in japan AD 300 .... we're not steal japanese sword we use short sword(Hwan Do) and japanese used long sword (katana) (i love japan :D )

But, even with the "trademark" sword, there weren't many of these, as in Korea, blades were manufactured customized to each perfection, to fit the person perfectly for their use. In fact, Koreans did favor martial arts over sword arts, in terms of the popularity with the general populace. Examples include spear arts, nun chucks, and plain old fist fighting. Cavalry was also an important aspect, as was in any country during the time.

you can see it on the clothes that its korean... she is wearing something really similar to a heanbok a korean traditional dress

Lovely choreo! I love swords!

Fighting ... with ease and grace^^Love her style!

... Can we just focus on the beauty of the dance? Man what I would give to learn how to do that.

know the technical term), which was really good but time consuming, while Hwando masters used "normal way", which was less time comsuming work. It doesn't mean that Korea didn't have the "folding" technique. They had the skill to do it, but they found it not needed. As you guys know, true fact that everyone agrees, is that Japan was in feudal system, while Korea was a centralized country (no offense intended). That meant that each lords in Japan needed their own "power" or soldiers, which caused

Whateva man. Looked good to me, Beauty is timeless. The newer forms can mix well with the traditional. Open your mind.

The emperor, himself proclaimed, he is of Korean descent. So to be honest Koreans, and the Japanese should get along. Even though they may have a rough past, they are still brother countries.

It is true the the Katana is now a Japanese trademark icon, but within history, they were also used in other countries. Now, as for Korea, which had been in contact and conflict with Japan for a long time (due to Japan looking for a foothold on the mainland to attack China from,), naturally had obtained some Japanese technology, therefore explaining the similar blade works from some of its dances from the past. But Korea didn't favor the blades as much, and did not delve too deep into it.

i love that dress and its sleeves

actually the katana is a combination of the jian and dao however korean swords were just jian with different fitting on the blade and the manufacturing methods came from tang dynasty china

Beautiful! See, this is why western martial culture is so damn dull. We need more stuff like this.

From the start, Korea had been a culture more concentrated on philosophy and the arts, more of the state of mine in a person as he lives life. Therefore, sword technology was hard to find. But that doesn't mean there wasn't any fanatics or families of blacksmiths who did this type of work. The more "trademark" type of blade in Korea is, in fact, a straight, double edged blade with a point and a hand guard lying same direction as the blade.

Dual-sword-wielding chick doing a beautiful dance in a gorgeous dress. Man. I think I'm in love with her. ^__^

I don't know about Korea, but China has a long tradition of male 'dancers' in what is called "Chinese opera" (Beijing Opera being the most famous of the many regional styles), including sword dances and other male roles. The word 'dance' doesn't work so well here in an Asian context, it isn't like Western dance, but you could day 'dance-drama'...

Why all the dumb complaints about 'martial arts' and cultural origins? This is dancing, not swordfighting. The swords are just props.

Wow, Amazing, I see a Fusion of Chinese & Japanese sword styles in her performance.

Korean swords and Japanese swords are somewhat related, I belive. I'm not sure, but I think the Korean design is actually the older one. There's also a Chinese dao variant that looks very much like the katana.

You are correct, but in all fairness, this style of sword is mostly japanese, but with a heavy influence of the long sword whirlwhind form of wudanquan. The girl is beautiful. Koreans normally use too many kicks and they do rely on the use of inertial circular force in long range sweeps, like fighting against a helicopter's blades in kicks and long punches, or lunge at you like a fencer, the grappling systems are all stand-up and rely too much on kicks, but overall they are a good exercise.

Holy crap, I thought I recongnized the first song!!! Name: 'Yason' Source: Magna Carta: Crimson Stigmata, a game based heavily from Korean influences (main artist for the game is Korean) And Korean women are hawt...

And, same as any other country in Europe, Americas, or within the Asian continent, neighboring countries tend to have technology leaked to both sides, which in term is usually changed to fit the country's tastes. Japan, Korea, and China is a very good example as technology had pretty much been almost equally shared sue to the constant contact of the countries.

@Hanul91 Kyokushin is Japanese art developed by Mas Oyama aka Choi, Young-i. Mas Oyama's lineage stems from training in Chinese Kempo when he lived in China and then Shotokan Karate, under Gichin Funakoshi, in Japan.

The sword forging techniques originated in China. The metal however, originated in Japan. The Japanese learned the techniques approximately during the Tang Dynasty, and since then, we've had the katana. Chinese weapons however, aren't as good as the Japanese, although forging techniques remained much the same. Most likely because the Chinese used plain iron, while the Japanese used tamahagane, which was further purified during the forging process.

@scottbaioisdead Yes, it was my understanding that they could only trace their lineage back to the late 70's. I never thought it was a tradtional art.