* Tae (태): Means "to kick" or "foot"
* Kwon (권): Means "fist" or "power of the fist"
* Do (도): Means "way" or "art"
Therefore, Taekwondo literally translates to "the way of kicking and punching" or "the art of foot and fist."
While the word "Taekwondo" wasn't officially used until the 1950s, the origins of the martial art itself can be traced back centuries to ancient Korean fighting styles like Subak and Taekkyon.
It's important to note that the word "Taekwondo" is a relatively recent development in the history of the art. The term was coined in 1955 by General Choi Hong Hi, who is considered the founder of modern Taekwondo. Before that, various Korean martial arts existed under different names.