Chán is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism.

The word Chán is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna, which can be approximately translated as "meditation" or "meditative state.

"Chán develops from a loose group of dhyana practitioners in the 6th century CE into the dominant Buddhist school of China at the Song period.

The picture of Chán which was developed during the Song is still prevalent in the popular imagination.

From China, Chán spreads south to Vietnam, and east to Korea and Japan.