Gorodki
Gorodki(Russian:Городки,lit. 'townlets';Swedish:Poppi;Lithuanian:Miestučiai) is a Russian folk sport. Similar in concept tobowlingand also somewhat tohorseshoes,the aim of the game is to knock out groups ofskittlesarranged in various patterns by throwing a bat at them. The skittles, or pins, are calledgorodki(literally "little cities" or "townlets" ), and the square zone in which they are arranged is called thegorod( "city" ).
Its popularity has spread toKarelia,Finland,Sweden,Ingria,parts ofLithuania,andEstonia.In theScandinavianandBaltic languages,the game has many different names, such askurnimäng,kriuhka,köllöi,keili,andmiestučiai.The Finnish variant is calledkyykkä,orFinnish skittles.
The game was known in a form that is quite close to the modern one at least from the 17th century, since one of the most notablegorodkiplayers wasPeter the Great.[1]It has survived in the contemporary period.[2][3]
Gameplay[edit]
The game consists of throwing a bat from a predetermined distance at thegorodki,which are arranged in one of 15 configurations:
- Cannon (пушка,pushka)
- Fork (вилка,vilka)
- Star (звезда,zvezda)
- Arrow (стрела,strela)
- Well (колодец,kolodets)
- Crankshaft (коленчатый вал,kolenchatyy val)
- Artillery (артиллерия,artilleriya)
- Racquet (ракетка,raketka)
- Machine gun installation (пулемётное гнездо,pulemyotnoe gnezdo)
- Lobster (рак,rak)
- Watchmen (часовые,chasovye)
- Sickle (серп,serp)
- Shooting gallery (тир,tir)
- Airplane (самолёт,samolet)
- Letter (письмо,pis'mo)
The goal is to completely knock thegorodkiout of a marked square using the fewest possible number of throws.
"Letter" figure rules[edit]
When a player reaches the "letter" figure, a special set of rules apply:
- You must aim to the center spot and knock thegorodkiin the figure out (players say "open the letter" )
- Another fourgorodkireturn to their place unless the center spot is knocked out
- You must knock the figure from 13 metres.
-
Cannon -
Fork -
Star -
Arrow -
Well -
Crankshaft -
Artillery -
Racquet -
Machine gun installation -
Lobster -
Watchmen -
Sickle -
Shooting gallery -
Airplane -
Letter
History[edit]
Although traditionallygorodkiis a folk game, it was played by Russian historical figures such asPeter I,Alexander Suvorov,Vladimir Lenin,andJoseph Stalin,as well as cultural luminaries likeIvan Pavlov,Leo Tolstoy,Maksim Gorky,Nikolay Timofeev-Ressovsky,and others.[4]
The game as it existed prior to 1923 had no rulesper se.It was organized into a legitimate sport and its rules codified in 1923, when the first all-Union competition was held, and it became an event at the first all-Union Olympiad in 1928.[4]
Popular culture[edit]
The game was shown in an episode of the Soviet animated seriesNu, pogodi!.Additionally,gorodkiwas featured in the popular CBS reality showThe Amazing Race 17,episode 7, during a Roadblock challenge. The game was also featured onSchlag den Raabon 4 June 2011, and was a favorite childhood pastime of the eponymous protagonist of the novelPninbyVladimir Nabokov(p. 106, Vintage). The game can be played on theWiigame system through the game discREC ROOMreleased in 2009.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^История игрыat gorodki.org(in Russian)
- ^Smorodinskaya, Tatiana; Evans-Romaine, Karen; Goscilo, Helena (28 October 2013).Encyclopedia of Contemporary Russian Culture.Routledge. p. 224.ISBN978-1-136-78785-0.
- ^Fedina, Olga (19 May 1993)."Gorodki: An Ancient Sport Endures".The Moscow Times.
- ^ab"Gorodki.com.ru".Archived fromthe originalon 2007-09-27.Retrieved2007-08-10.
