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Purple is the halfway point in most American Taekwondo schools. A purple belt has learned four forms and the core kicks, and is about to start the more athletic, spinning techniques that make Taekwondo famous. It is not one of the six classic colors, so you will not find it in every school, but where it is used it marks a clear line: from here on, the student is no longer a beginner but an intermediate student, and the expectations rise with that.
What the purple belt symbolizes
Because purple is a color schools add, there is no official meaning. The most common explanation is that purple is the sky as it changes color at dawn or dusk, the moment between the green of the growing plant and the blue of the open sky. In other words, it is a transition belt, the bridge from the beginner ranks into the intermediate ones.
Some schools describe purple as the mountain the student is about to climb, with the hardest and most rewarding part of the color belts ahead. Both images point to the same idea: purple belt is about getting ready for a bigger challenge.
The attitude expected at purple belt
The word instructors use most at purple belt is perseverance. This is the stage where many students plateau. They are no longer making the fast progress of the first year, the new kicks are genuinely difficult and sparring gets more serious. Instructors want to see a student keep showing up and keep working through that slump.
Purple belts are also expected to set an example. In many schools they start leading the warm-up, helping white belts in line or holding pads for younger students. That responsibility is part of the rank: the instructor is watching how the student treats people below them, not only how well they kick.
What a purple belt learns
The purple belt is where the kicking really expands. Common additions are:
The back kick (dwi chagi), a powerful kick that turns the body and drives the heel straight back. It is the first kick that requires turning away from the target, and timing it takes practice.
The hook kick (huryeo chagi), a kick that sweeps the heel across toward the target, often taught alongside a better roundhouse.
Double and fast kicks. Two roundhouse kicks without putting the foot down, or switching feet quickly, both used in sparring.
Sparring with full gear (gyeorugi). Most purple belts spar regularly with a chest protector, helmet, forearm and shin guards, gloves and a mouthguard. The rules are explained in our sparring guide.
Taegeuk Oh Jang, the fifth form, which adds hammer fist strikes, elbow strikes, a side kick into an elbow strike, and a hop into a cross stance at the finish. See our step-by-step guide to Taegeuk Oh Jang.
What is on the test for blue belt
A typical test from purple belt includes basics with the new strikes, back kicks and hook kicks on pads, a review of earlier forms followed by Taegeuk Oh Jang, Korean terms, self-defense techniques, and a sparring round. Board breaking at this level is often a side kick or back kick, sometimes through two boards for teens and adults.
Judges look for power that comes from the hips rather than the arms, and balance on kicks that turn the body. In the form, the elbow strikes and hammer fists should be sharp, and the cross stance should be stable.
How long purple belt takes
Purple belt usually takes three to four months. Students who started sparring regularly at green belt tend to find purple easier, because the new kicks are built for sparring.
Tips for parents and students
If your child seems to have lost some enthusiasm around purple belt, you are not alone. This is a common drop-off point across martial arts. It helps to remind them how far they have come, perhaps by watching a white belt class together, and to set a concrete short-term goal like landing a back kick on a pad or breaking a board.
For students, the back kick will come faster if you practise the turn slowly without kicking first. Look over your shoulder at the target, then turn and kick. Speed comes once the movement is automatic.
Next comes the blue belt. For the full ladder of ranks, see Taekwondo ranks explained.
Questions parents and students ask
Where does purple belt come in Taekwondo?
In most US nine-color schools, purple comes after green and before blue, usually as 6th geup. Six-color schools do not use purple, and a few schools put it in a different place, so check your curriculum sheet.
What does purple belt symbolize in Taekwondo?
Schools that use purple usually describe it as the changing sky at dawn or dusk, the transition between the green of growth and the blue of the sky. It marks the move from beginner to intermediate student. The meaning is a school tradition rather than an official one.
What form is learned at purple belt?
Usually Taegeuk Oh Jang, the fifth form, which is tested for blue belt.
