Chin Na - Definition and Overview

Chin Na (Wade-Giles: ch'in na) or Qinna (擒拿, pinyin: qín ná) is a Mandarin Chinese term describing joint-manipulation techniques for self defense used in the Chinese martial arts, very often involving the study and use of acupressure points to enhance the efficiency of the techniques applied by the practitioner. While techniques along the lines of chin na are trained to some degree by most martial arts worldwide, many Chinese martial arts are famous for their specialization in such applications. Styles such as Eagle Claw (Yīng Zhǎo Quán) (鷹爪拳), which includes 108 different chin na techniques, Praying Mantis (Táng Láng Quán 螳螂拳) and the "Tiger Claw" techniques of Hung Gar (洪家) are well known examples.

"Chin" means to seize or trap, "Na" means to lock or break, and while those actions are very often executed in that order (trap then lock), the two actions can also be performed distinctly in training and self defense. Which is to say, a trap isn't always followed by a lock or break, and a lock or break is not necessarily set up by a trap.