Korea traditional games part 1

Nowadays, kids are playing electronic games more than traditional games, for me, I would like to play traditional  games rather than computer games or programmed games~^_^  Let us see what are the traditional games play by Korean. 

Yeon Naligi (Kite flying) 연날리기

Kite flying is a square shaped  and well-wishing symbols are written on  yeon (kite) made by putting bamboo sticks on a changhoji paper cross ways and sewing them down.   It is sent up into the sky as far as the attached string will go,   the string is cut. Koreans used to make wishes for health and happiness for the New Year as a part of yeonnalligi. You can also play games with yeonnalligi by competing to see who can cut the other’s yeon string first. The Pangp'aeyon (shield kite) and Kaoriyon (stingray kite) are just two of the many different types of kites. Kite-flying is very popular when it comes on traditional holidays such as Lunar New Year's Day or other folk festival days.

Paengi-chigi (Top-spinning)파엔기치기

Top-spinning is one of the favorite sports of boys played either indoors or outdoors, this game offers a diversion from the heat of summer and the cold boredom of winter storms. 
The frozen rice paddies or ponds offer the best place to spin the top.

Tops were originally round pieces of wood that had been sharpened to a point at one end. A string was wrapped around and yanked to set the top spinning. Many games are played with tops. In one such game, a mark is made and the first person who can spin their top around the mark and back to its original position is the winner. In another game, each player tries to knock down the opponent's top in a game of "fighting tops".

Yutnori 윷놀이

It is a stick-throwing board game, which is believed to have its roots in divination rituals practiced by farmers in the 5th century. Now it is considered as the most popular traditional game.
It is played with four bamboo sticks — round on one side and flat on the other. First, the sticks are thrown on the ground, and you move your game piece according to the number that comes up (The combination of flat and round sides in each throw determines the number of spaces one can move on a board marked with 29 spaces). All four sticks are thrown together, and your game piece must cross the finish line to win.

Neoltwiggi 널뛰기

Neoltwiggi is a girls' jumping game played on boards that look like western seesaws. First,  place a rolled-up straw mat under a long board called a “neol”. One girl stands at the edge of the seesaw, and the other one stands at the other side. Each jumps in turn, and when one comes down, the other is launched into the air. The object of the game is to see who can jump higher.  This game originated from the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) when women, especially young girls, were confined to their homes. Folklore says the game developed out of the women’s desire to catch a fleeting glimpse of men passing outside their homes’ walls. New Year’s Day used to be the only time of year that girls could see over the courtyard walls. Thus the see-saw became a sport of love instead of physical exercise.

Go-Stop (고스톱)

This is also probably the famous game you often see in Korean dramas, where famiy members sit down together making noises of card being slapped to the cloth (they even have special blanket lookalike for this game). It is called hwatu (화투) in Korean. There are two or three players at a time for this game. The general point of this game is to score points, usually three or seven, and then call a “Go” or a “Stop.” When a “Go” is called, the game continues, and the amount of points or money is first increased, and then doubled, tripled, quadrupled and so on. When a “Stop” is called, the game ends and the winner collects their winnings.

Wants to know more, remember to follow our blog for Korea traditional games part 2~ XD

by : JY