Arm wrestling - Udezumo

Two people face each other, with their elbows fixed on the floor or a desk, and each person clasps one of their hands. The winner is the one who can overpower the other person's hand. It is a type of strength contest that has been played since ancient times, and in the Middle Ages it appears in the Gikeiki under the name "Ude Oshi". The word sumo means to fight with strength, and there are also arm, leg and finger sumo games, and children's games include fighting snails and spiders, or catching and hitting flowers such as dandelions and violets to compete for strength. The shape of violets makes them particularly easy to hook, so they are also known as sumo-toribana (sumo-tori flower).

[Hisako Maruyama]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

2人向かい合って、肘(ひじ)を床の上や机の上に固定させ、互いに左右いずれかの手を握り合い、相手の手をねじ伏せたほうを勝ちとする遊び。力競(くら)べの一種で、古くから行われ、中世には「腕押し」の名称で『義経記(ぎけいき)』にもみえている。スモウという語は力を戦わせる意味で、腕とか脚、指相撲というのもあり、子供の遊びのなかにはカタツムリやクモなどを戦わせたり、タンポポ、スミレなどの花を引っ掛けたり、打ち合ったりして強弱を競う場合もある。とくにスミレは花の形が引っ掛けやすいので相撲取花(すもうとりばな)の異名もある。

［丸山久子］

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