Kendama

Kendama (けん玉^?, also written as 剣玉 and 拳玉) ((also known as duce ball)) is a traditional Japanese toy. The ken has three cups and a spike which fits into the hole in the ball.

Kendama bears similarities to the classic cup-and-ball game, and the Hispanic world toy known as boliche or balero. The principle of these toys are the same: catching one object with another, where both are joined by a string. However the modern kendama style takes influences from a diverse range of skills including yo-yo, diabolo, juggling and dance.

The origins of the game are disputed. It has been described as a variation French ball-and-cup game bilboquet which dates to the 16th century. It is generally agreed that Kendama dates to the late 17th or early 18th century.

The kendama arrived in Japan from the West in around 1777, at which point Nagasaki was the only port open to foreign trade. Reportedly, kendama was initially a sort of adult's drinking game — a player who made a mistake was forced to drink more. The game gained popularity during the Edo Period (1600-1868).

In the early 20th century, the toy had two side cups and was called a jitsugetsu ball (日月ボール^?). This translates to 'sun and moon ball', named so because of the ball's representation of the sun and the cups' likeness to the crescent moon.

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