The first documentation of fork usage as weapon was in the Ming dynasty. Many variations of martial forks exist. The horse fork is long like a lance. The flying fork is short like a small spear. Fighting forks can have two or three prongs. A two-prong fork is called an ox horn fork but the three-pronged fork is more common. The three-prong fork can also be called 3-horn fork, 3-head fork or trident.

Kung Fu practitioners also call the trident a tiger fork. The tiger fork prongs are spread so to keep a Chinese tiger at bay, while the sharp points could jab at a great cat. When wild tigers still roamed China, a hunter would angle the fork with the handle end braced against the ground. This move was used as the tiger pounced, so they would skewer themselves before reaching the hunter. Tiger fork practitioners still practice this technique within their forms.

Apart from straight jabbing, the tiger fork can be swung to strike flat like a shovel or chop with the edge like a sword. Its prongs can also trap and disarm. When an opposing weapon is caught between the prongs, the fork is spun striping a weapon from an opponent's hand.

Kung Fu practitioners saw the offensive and defensive aspects of every tool and its connection to their daily lives. You could say that Kung Fu makes fighters of farmers and fishermen. This is why the ancient tiger fork will always be amongst the venerated weapons of Kung Fu.

Written By Sifu Rino Côté