Hello, this is my first post, but I have been reading these forums for a while and I don't think this has been covered, but please point me to the thread if it has.

I'm curious of the origins of wooden dummies in Kung Fu training. I believe that the wing chun style dummy is also used in Choy Li Fut and White Eyebrow. I think I've seen references to it in other styles too, but I'm not clear. Is anyone an expert on this topic?

I'm curious if it is southern tool/method exclusively or if it was just way more common across kung fu than I realized.

I'm also aware that there are other type of pole/dummy structures, like the 3 or 4 trunk dummies that I've seen in some southern mantis videos and in certain less well known branches of wing chun.

But, my interest in the history and pervasiveness of dummy training exceeds my knowledge about it and I thought I'd see what I could learn by asking the question.

Thanks in advance for your replies.

JRB