At some point in your life and training, you may have heard these terms used in various classes or even in old action theater movies. Here for your reference are a few of the words we use from the Cantonese Dialect of Chinese:
(Counting)- Yat, Yi, Sam, Sei, Ng, Lok, Chut, Bat, Gow, Sup. The numerals 1 through 10 in Cantonese.
Gin Lai– command to bow or pay respect in class
Gin Wu– Switch, a command for switching between left stance and right stance.
Gi Yi– command to come to attention stance
Ma Bo– command and name for horse riding stance
Qisheng– pronounced with ‘ch’ sound, this word is the title of Grand Master. The Grand Master and Founder of the Shaolin Institute of Chinese Martial Arts is Qisheng Raymond Bennett.
Sifu– teacher, usually reserved for higher ranking black sashes. Literally translates as father.