スポーツ人類学／口頭発表③

[12人-口-09] Traditional Games of West Bengal: A Cultural Heritage for Ensuring Well-being among Indian Children in Modern Era

It was a survey study based on the folk games of West Bengal, and eastern state of India which was conducted through interview and questionnaire.

*Nita Bandyopadhyay¹ (1. University of Kalyani, India: NAPESS)

Introduction: India has rich cultural diversity. West Bengal, the eastern state of India has been always known for its rich culture and heritage. Different organizations and committees are working world-wide for safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage among which traditional games is one. Traditional games are played informally with minimal equipment and children learn by example from other children. But nowadays, most of the traditional games are being abandoned by the children as the gadgets have become more attractive for them. But still these games have huge potential for shaping the personality of children. The purpose of the study was to identify, analyse and to determine the benefits of the traditional games that are played by the children of West Bengal. Methods: For gathering information on traditional games the primary sources which included interview and handmade questionnaire, was given to 120 people (40 young adults of 18-35 years, 40 elderly adults of 36-60 years, and 40 children of 5-12 years) and secondary sources that used books, websites & journals. Results: Traditional games are mostly used by the rural youngsters which are of many types such as, games of physical skill, strategy, memory, chance and rhythm games, simulation and verbal games. The most popular traditional games in West Bengal are Hopscotch, Hide and Seek, Spinning the Top, Five Stone, Hitting Seven Stones, Dog and the bone, Tipcat, Marbles etc. Conclusion: Based on observation, it may be concluded that traditional games are locally organized, safe and provide unique opportunities for physical development, amusement, creativity, transmission of culture, peer group interactions and offers socialization through cooperation and togetherness and can ensure the wellness among the children.
Keywords: intangible culture, traditional games, wellness, youngsters.