Turtle Kung Fu - lost in the Martial Metaphor

Turtle Style Kung Fu.  One of the 12 animals of Xingyiquan, the oldest of the three major internal martial arts of China.

I heard of it years before I saw a demo.  Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was prominent on TV, and so the toys were everywhere.  Little kids yelling, "Cowabunga!" on the school yard, trying to be super acrobatic gnarly ninjas?

Or maybe, the reference was to a turtle shell.  A form of Iron Shirt Qi gong that would make a student impervious to any attack?  One of these "Hit-my-testicles-with-a-2-by-4-and-watch-the-board-break kinda fighting styles?

Maybe snapping turtles?  Tiger Claw type ripping and tearing?

I definitely had an image of slow, of the race between the tortoise and the hare teaching perseverance, of a defensive approach.  Heavy, solid.

So, when I was told it looked like Cloud Hands, I didn't get it.  Light, fast circular movements.  Turtle?!?

http://youtu.be/vKIOFsFQoD8

Eventually I learned the inspiration was the SEA TURTLE.  Swimming movements.  Smooth circular deflections, open hand strikes and wrapping motions.  Some zig zag motions.

Not turtle soup, no eggs laid in the sand, no herringbone walking pattern, no invulnerability, no pizza.  Suddenly the metaphor and inspiration made sense.  It also made sense that this animal style has a few names other names like Lizard.  People who lived inland before YouTube probably didn't immediately picture a swimming turtle.

I guess the whole point for me is that there are so many Japanese words or translated Chinese names that I don't put this much effort into understanding.  All the stuff I never even tried to think about, research or understand - because I already figured I understood it - maybe there is more to understand.