ancient game of kicking a ball

The name of China's national intangible cultural heritage: Cuju

Applicant: Zibo City, Shandong Province

Item No.: 299

Project No.: VI - 17

Time of publication: 2006 (the first batch)

Category: traditional sports, recreation and acrobatics

Region: Shandong Province

Type: new item

Applicant: Zibo City, Shandong Province

Protection unit: Linzi District Cultural Center, Zibo City

Introduction to Cuju

Applicant: Zibo City, Shandong Province

Cuju is also known as "Cuju", "Cuqiu", "cuyuan", "zhuqiu", "Qiyuan", etc. "Cuju" means kicking with feet. "Ju" is a leather ball, "Cuju" means kicking with feet. It is an ancient sport in China, with three forms of direct confrontation, indirect confrontation and free play.

In the direct confrontation game, Ju City is set as the stadium with short walls around it. Both sides of the game have a small house like goal; there are 12 players on the field, and the two sides have direct physical contact with each other, just like in a war, the one who kicks into the other side's goal wins. In indirect confrontation, there is a goal in the middle. There are more than two feet of "romantic eyes" in the middle of the goal. Both sides are on one side. If the ball doesn't land, the one who can make it pass through the "romantic eyes" wins. Baida is mainly a game of patterns and techniques, also known as the game "solution", each solution has a variety of kicking actions, such as turning, creeping, riding, pedaling, twisting, etc. the ancients also named some actions, such as turning heaven and earth, swallow homing, oblique flower arrangement, wind swinging lotus, Buddha top bead, dry land fish picking, Golden Buddha pushing and grinding, shoulder back moon, crutch meteor, etc.

Cuju has been popular for more than 2300 years. It originated in Linzi, the former capital of Qi State in the spring and Autumn period and Warring States period. It gained great development in Han Dynasty. It was the most prosperous in Tang and Song Dynasty, and began to decline from Yuan and Ming Dynasty. It was mainly popular among the people in Qing Dynasty. Since the 20th century, due to the impact of war, disasters and other reasons, Cuju activities have become increasingly rare.

Cuju has an important influence on the emergence of modern football. In Tang Dynasty, Chinese Cuju spread eastward to Japan and Korea, westward to Europe, and developed into modern football in Britain. From June 9 to 11, 2004, the expert demonstration meeting on the origin of football was held in Linzi District, Zibo City, Shandong Province, and reached a unanimous conclusion: Ancient Chinese Cuju originated in Linzi, the capital of Qi during the spring and Autumn period and the Warring States period. On July 15, 2004, at the press conference of the third China International Football Expo, FIFA and AFC announced that China is the birthplace of football, and world football originated from Cuju in Zibo and Linzi of Shandong Province.

Although Cuju has been preserved in Linzi area, it is in an endangered state due to the impact of western culture and the transformation of Chinese society, which is in urgent need of rescue.