The people of Mongolia, a land in Asia, have been herders of animals for centuries. They raise sheep, goats, horses, cows, yaks, and camels. The whole family cares for the animals and moves from place to place to find food for them.
Games and sports are important in the life of the Mongolian people. They are famous for horse racing, a summer sport. In early spring, at the time of their New Year celebration, people play board games and dominoes as part of the festivities. In the past, people believed that playing board games in summer and autumn would bring thunderstorms and wolves to attack the herds. Perhaps the real reason for banning such games was that they would take attention away from the care of the herds.
• Sheet of unlined paper, at least 8 inches (20 cm) square
• Ruler
• Pencil
• Colored markers or crayons
• Glue
• Piece of cardboard or construction paper, at least 9 inches (22.5 cm) square
• 11 counters for each player or team, two different kinds (beans, buttons, coins, or checkers)
See the directions for drawing the game board for Alquerque de Nueve (page 19). Then connect the corners of the three squares by drawing diagonal lines. Mark the 24 points where the lines intersect. Figure 27
The object of the game is to get a row of three counters. The row can be made along the side of a square, along a line joining the midpoints of the sides of the squares, or along a diagonal line joining the corners. There are 20 ways to make a row. Figure 28
Game board for Jirig
Figure 27
Figure 28
Three different ways to make a row
1. The players take turns placing one counter at a time on an empty point on the board. After all the counters have been placed, the players take turns moving one marker along a line to the next empty point. Jumping over a counter is not allowed.
2. When a player forms a row of three, he or she removes one of the opponent’s counters from the board. That counter is not used for the rest of the game. However, counters that are part of a row of three may not be removed.
3. The loser is the player who has only two counters on the board remaining, or is blocked from moving.
See the hints for Six Men’s Morris and Alquerque de Nueve.
Play Nerenchi. Girls and women in Sri Lanka enjoy the game called Nerenchi. The board is the same as for Jirig. Each player or team has 12 counters. A player who makes a row of three during the “placing” stage takes an extra turn and may do so for each row made. The “placing” stage ends when 22 counters are on the board. One player may have 12 counters on the board, while the other has only 10.
In the following games, each player starts with 12 counters, as in Nerenchi. The game board is the same.
Country |
Name of Game |
China |
Sam K’i |
Korea |
Kon-tjil |
Malaysia |
Dig Dig |
Somalia |
Shah and Shax |
New England colonies (in early U.S. history) |
Twelve Men’s Morris |
