Origins: Pre-Histories of Football

“Origins: Pre-Histories of Football” explores four different ball games from different eras and geographical regions. The first chapter focuses on the Japanese game Kemari.

The following three chapters shine a light on the Meso-American ball games, the ball games of Ancient Greece and Rome and on Cuju in China.

To the chapters

Kemari in Japan

Kemari is a highly ritualised game indigenous to Japan that has been played for over a millennium. It is one of just two ancient ball games, along with Cuju from China, that we know were played exclusively with the feet.

The game of kemari enjoyed a high social status, the legacy of which is a historical record that has been passed down through the centuries. It is the only ancient ball game for which we have accurate details as to its exact nature.

Meso-American ball games

The history of ball games in Meso-America – a cultural region that encompasses parts of modern-day Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica – stretches back millennia.

Such games were fundamental for the political, social and ritual life of the communities and empires that flourished in the region. Anthropologist Paul Kirchhoff, who coined the term “Meso-America”, included the playing of ball games in his list of traits that defined the Meso-American cultural tradition.

Greco-Roman ball games

Greece and Rome set new standards for organized sport, giving the world the Olympic Games and gladiatorial contests. Ball sports were relegated to the margins in these heroic times, but there is plenty of evidence that they were a part of everyday life.

Episkyros, phaeninda, aporraxis and ourania, were the major ancient Greek ball games; while harpastum, trigon, follis, paganice and arenata are known to have been played in the Roman world.

Cuju in China

The Chinese ball game Cuju was played in a wide variety of forms and locations for almost 2,000 years. Cuju changed and developed over time, its development being spurred by technological developments and cultural changes.

Many different versions of Cuju co-existed alongside each other. It could be played competitively or co-operatively, in a team or individually, for victory or for aesthetic reasons. Despite being played little today, Cuju’s vibrant history lives on, especially in relation to the founding myths of the Chinese nation and people.