Kendama

[Maths Dude]

Ok, I am pretty sure this game was not invented in Japan (as 99% of japanese actually believe). I think it came from China. Yet when I told that to some Japanese they swear black and blue it isnt true! Bah

[amdg]

From http://web-jpn.org/kidsweb/virtual/kendama/history.html

Many people may think that kendama was invented in Japan, but this is not actually the case. While many different theories exist, there are records indicating that kendama originated in France in the sixteenth century. There are also theories that this game was developed in Greece or China, and the absolute truth is not known.

In France, this game was called bilboquet. Bil means "ball," and boquet means "small tree." This word expresses the fact that the game involved playing with a small wooden ball. The game as it was played then was different from what we know as kendama today; there was a large cup and a small cup on either end of a stick, to which a ball was attached with a string. The player would continually toss and catch the ball, alternating between the two cups.

Kendama is believed to have come to Japan via the Silk Road during the Edo period (1603-1868) into Nagasaki, the only Japanese city open to foreign trade at the time. While it may have entered the country around the middle of the Edo period in around 1777 or 1778, the exact date is uncertain. At the time, kendama was apparently enjoyed by adults as a sort of drinking game. A player who made a mistake was forced to drink more.