Kendama (fist ball)

Japanese: 剣玉(拳玉) - けんだま

A wooden toy well known around the world. It is made of a stick about 15cm long, with one end sharpened into a sword shape and the other end in a small dish-shaped indentation, and a wooden ball with a hole in the bottom is tied to the stick with a string. The player plays by swinging the string to thrust the ball through the tip of the sword or into the dish. It is said to have originated in China. A similar toy called cup and ball has been available in Europe since the 16th century. It was introduced as a kind of educational toy in Japan at the beginning of the Meiji era, when the school system was established, but it had already been introduced to Japan from China during the Edo period.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

世界的によく知られている木製玩具。15cmほどの棒の先端を剣のような形にとがらせ，他の端は小さな皿型にくぼみをつけ，棒には底に穴のあいた木球をひもで結びつけてある。そのひもを振って反動をつけながら，球を剣のさきにさしたり，皿に入れたりして遊ぶ。発祥は中国といわれる。16世紀ころからヨーロッパにも，これに似たカップ･アンド･ボールという遊戯具があった。明治初年に日本で学制が布かれたころ，これが一種の教育玩具として紹介されたことがあるが，日本には江戸時代すでに中国から渡来していた。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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