Games in ancient Japan

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Shogi , Go and Sugoroku (from left to right) in an image by Torii Kiyonaga
Ban-Sugoroku (detail from the Hikone screen)
Sugoroku Hizakurige
Sugoroku "tossing beans"

Most of the games in ancient Japan ( Japanese 遊戯 , Yūgi ) that were played in the room were based on suggestions from abroad, but were then often designed specifically in Japanese.

Board games

Shogi

Shogi belongs to the same family of games as the game of chess , the Indian Chaturanga and the Chinese Xiangqi . One of the peculiarities of the Shogi is the possibility of "transporting" pieces that reach the opponent's starting area (for this purpose the piece is turned over, the back of which represents a stronger piece), as well as the ability to put the opponent's pieces back into play for themselves bring to.

Go

Go is a strategy game for two players. Two players take turns placing pieces of the same value on the crossing points of the board. The aim is to take up as much of the playing field as possible with closed chains. Formations of opposing stones are captured by enclosing them all around. Despite the comparatively simple basic rules, complex strategic possibilities arise. Of unclear East Asian origin, it was heavily promoted by the Shogun rulers in the Edo period in the early 17th century and has spread outside of East Asia since the 20th century.

Sugoroku

Sugoroku (Eng. "A pair of sixes") describes a group of Japanese dice and board games. In contrast to the Ban-suguroku ( 盤 双 六 ) on a wooden block, the E-sugoroku ( 絵 双 六 ) is played on a game board . The only thing that both games have in common is that they are played with dice. With the E-suguroku, stations are run to a destination. The most popular e-sugoroku depicting paths were:

  • Dōchū-sugoroku ( 道 中 双 六 , "travel sugoroku"),
  • Tōkaidō -sugoroku ( 東海 道 双 六 ),
  • Hizakurige kokkei-sugoroku ( 膝 栗 毛 双 六 ),
  • Sampai-sugoroku ( 参 拝 双 六 , "Pilgrimage-Sugoroku"),
  • and Sugoroku to different areas of Japan.

There was also a whole range of E-sugoroku on various topics:

  • Kichijō-sugoroku ( 吉祥 双 六 , "good-omen-Sugoroku"),
  • Shōbu-sugoroku ( 勝負 双 六 , " Wettspiel -Sugoroku"),
  • Bushō-sugoroku ( 武将 双 六 , "General Sugoroku"),
  • Shinshun-sugoroku ( 新春 双 六 , "New Year's Sugoroku"),
  • Shibai-sugoroku ( 芝 居 双 六 , "theater sugoroku"),
  • Kyōjun-sugoroku ( 教 順 双 六 ),

and others more.

Card games

Hyakunin Isshu Utagaruta

Hyakunin Isshu Utagaruta ( 百 人 一 首歌 加 留 多 ) is a game based on the collection of poems Hyakunin Isshu . In a variant for beginners (proverbs) you have to be the first to find and grab the corresponding picture card when calling hana yori dango . The card marked with "ha" reproduces the saying in picture form: "Rice dumplings are more important than cherry blossoms."

Hanafuda

Like all card games in Japan, Hanafuda goes back to European models. You play it with a set of 12 × 4 cards of different values ​​that are assigned to the 12 months of the year (according to the lunar calendar). Here you can see the 12th month with the paulownie ( 桐 , kiri), together with manufacturer's notes , which refer to the company Nintendō , which printed playing cards for a hundred years before making the leap into the computer game age.

  • Hanafuda 12th month (Paulownia)

  • Box for Hanafuda (Nintendō)

More games

Kai-awase
With Kai-awase ( 貝 合 わ せ ) the aim is to find pairs of shells painted on the inside within a set. Very valuable collections of paintings, painted on a gold background, have been preserved and are kept in equally valuable containers. As an example, reference is made to a pair of shells, which shows the Miho pine forest strip with Mount Fuji in the background (Miho-no-matsubara), a landscape famous in ancient Japan.
16-Musashi
16-Musashi ( 十六 武 蔵 ) is similar to the German " Wolf und Schafe " game.

  • Kai-Awase

  • 16-Musashi game plan

  • 16-Musashi

rebus

The picture puzzle , the rebus, was very popular in the Edo period . As an example, a rebus is presented here, from which the old province names can be taken. In the cutout can be seen a hand in Japanese te ( 手 ), which with the accompanying Dakuten - diacritics to a de is. Then you can also see teeth, in Japanese ha ( 歯 ). This results together in the province of Dewa ( spelling at the time : Deha). However, the province is spelled correctly differently than 出 羽 . You also learn that the province was divided into 12 districts .

  • Provinces as picture puzzles

  • Excerpt from "Dewa no kuni"

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Namiki, p. 21

Remarks

  1. ↑ The exact title is: 鬼 外 ・ 福 内 ・ 豆 萬 吉 ・ 雙 六 = "Devil ( Oni ) out, happiness in. Throwing beans Sugoroku": Throwing beans ( 豆 蒔 き ) is described here with identical characters.
  2. ↑ This Sugoroku refers to the picaresque novel ( 滑稽 本 , kokkeibon ) Tōkaidō Hizakurige by Jippensha Ikku .

literature

Namiki S .: Edo no yūgi. Kai-awase, karuta, sugoroku . Seigensha Publishing House, Kyōto 2007, ISBN 978-4-86152-116-4