Taekwondo is a more modern style, and at its root is a blending of
ancient Korean and Japanese arts.  The creation is credited to General
Choi of Korea who headed the national organizing of the various styles
in Korea that had developed after Japan withdrew at the end of World
War II.  Choi brought together the best of Shotokan Karate and
Taekkyon, and combining that with effective techniques from the other
prominent schools of martial arts, Taekwondo was created in 1955. 
It included not only the martial techniques from the older styles, but
the discipline, honor, and way of living that have been handed down
through the years from and ancestry traced back to the 1600s and
which the previous generations have adapted for modern society.

Because Korea had felt it lost part of itself during its occupation, after
the war General Choi used Taekwondo as a vehicle to help give a
history lessons, as it were, to his people and the world. The names
and movements of the 24 patterns we practice give a story, beginning
with the creation of the world, tells of key figures through Korea's
history (poets, martyrs, etc.), and finishes with the hope of one day
the unification of the Koreas. It begins and ends with peace. To briefly
quote what Choi had said in regards to the patterns,

“The life of a human being, perhaps 100 years, can be considered as a
day when compared with eternity. Therefore, we mortals are no more
than simple travelers who pass by the eternal years of an eon in a day…
The 24 patterns represent 24 hours, one day, or all my life.”