Temari - Temari

A ball used in ball games, or a game of balls played to the accompaniment of songs. A ball made by using a core made of rolled cotton, clam shells, springs, potato husks, konjac balls, mountain cocoons, sand, or small bells, and stitching the core onto cloth with five-colored silk or cotton thread, is called a thread ball (Kagarimari), and developed as a toy for young girls from the Edo period onwards. Various things are put into the core to give the ball elasticity, and some are designed to make a cute sound. Depending on how the twill thread on the surface is wound, there are a variety of patterns, including plum, chrysanthemum, peony, and maple.

The history of balls is long, first kemari (made of leather) was introduced from ancient China in the Nara period, and from the Heian period onwards it was played mainly by the noble class in Kyoto. Eventually, temari, played with the hands instead of the feet, was developed, but in the old days, the temari was thrown high into the air like a ball and then caught without dropping to the ground, and traveling performers called shinadamatsukai appeared who made a living from this acrobatics. As elastic cotton became more widespread, temari changed to balls played on the floor, and became a toy for young girls. They were given as gifts to young girls as toys during the New Year, and were also used as decorations due to their auspicious designs. In recent years, they have been revived as handicrafts for tourists in old castle towns and are used in interior accessories. Currently, local toys include the Kukemari from Hachinohe City, Aomori Prefecture, the Gotenmari from Tsuruoka City, Yamagata Prefecture, and the Kinsukemari from Kagoshima City. It was only after the Meiji period that rubber balls replaced the thread balls and became a year-round game.

[Ryosuke Saito]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

手玉遊びに用いる鞠、または歌にあわせてそれをつく鞠遊び。丸めた綿やハマグリの殻、ぜんまい、いもがら、こんにゃく玉、山繭、砂、小鈴などを芯(しん)にして、その上を布に五色の絹糸や綿糸でかがったものを糸鞠（かがり鞠）といい、江戸時代から少女の遊び道具として発達した。芯にいろいろなものを入れたのは、鞠に弾力性をもたせるためで、なかにはかわいらしい音を出すようにくふうしたものもある。表面の綾糸(あやいと)の巻き方によって、ウメ、キク、ボタン、カエデなどさまざまな模様がある。

　鞠の歴史は古く、まず蹴鞠(けまり)（皮製）が古代中国の唐から奈良時代に渡来し、平安時代以後は京都の公卿(くぎょう)階級中心の遊びとして行われた。やがて足を用いるかわりに手を使って遊ぶ手鞠遊びが生まれたが、古くは手玉式に手鞠を高く投げ上げ、それを地面に落とさぬように受け止める遊びで、この曲芸を生業(なりわい)とする品玉遣(しなだまつか)いという旅の遊芸人も現れた。弾力性のある木綿(もめん)綿の普及につれて、床面について遊ぶ手鞠に変わり、少女の玩具(がんぐ)となった。正月に少女の玩具としてお年玉に贈答され、また図柄のめでたさから飾り物にも用いられた。最近では旧城下町などで観光用手芸品として復活し、室内アクセサリーなどにも応用されている。現在、青森県八戸(はちのへ)市のくけ鞠、山形県鶴岡市の御殿鞠、鹿児島市の金助鞠などが郷土玩具としてみられる。なお、糸鞠にかわってゴム製の鞠が登場、年中の遊びとなったのは明治以後である。

［斎藤良輔］

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