Siklódi Csilla szerk.: Tradicionális sportok, népi játékok (A Sportmúzeum Kincsei 2. Budapest, 1996)

Tradicionális sportok, népi játékok (Siklódi Csilla)

Obviously, this involved smaller and greater modification of traditional games. The most popular kindergarten and school games and contests can be traced to these sources. Sports, the exercises taught as part of physical education, however, have a more complex ancestry, even though most have a folk variant. The birth of their rules, in other words, the emergence of the final version, was greatly influenced by the British tradition. Games played with a ball and sticks are almost universal. In Hungary, these games were called mancsozás, and rounders too is a variant of these games. Their Romanian name is oina and they are also known in Estonia. These games, however, have practically become extinct and are only known to ethnographers, for they have been entirely ousted by baseball and cricket winch has become a sport. In Finland, for example, the 'Finnicized' version of baseball, called pasepallo, became a highly popular national sport. Industrial development and, also, the political and economic power of the bourgeoisie was the strongest in England. The emergence of the college system can be linked to this development. Similarly to the arts and sciences, games became part of the curriculum. Together with industrial innovations, this educational and school system was also adopted in many countries following their respective path of enbourgeoisement; the system was basically transplanted to the US and the British colonies without significant changes, while it spread to other countries in different ways. One case in point is Hungary: the encouragement, promotion and reform of sports can be linked to count István Széchenyi who, returning from Britain, brought not only various machinery, modern political and economic ideas, but — after acquainting himself with sports life in Britain — realized its potentially important role in Hungarian enbourgeoisement. (4. picture) He can be credited with the revival of horse-breeding and horse racing, the foundation of sports associations and the introduction of British sports and, also, with laying the foundations of a modern communications network. In conclusion we may say that folk games and modern sports should equally be part of everyday life and we should strive to maintain this dual tradition. The parallel existence of folk dances and modern dancers is nowhere challenged — similarly, we must realize that folk games and traditional sports are part of Hungarian eurhythmies and tradition.