Notes and Terms Ancient Sports and Civilization
What is sport?
Sport: “an organized, competitive, and skillful physical activity requiring commitment and fair play, in which a winner can be defined by objective means. it is governed by a set of rules or customs... Non-competitive activities, for example as jogging playing catch, are usually classified as forms of recreation.”
Physical events such as scoring goals or crossing a line first often define the result of a sport. However, the degree of skill and performance in some sport such as diving, dressage, and figure skating is judged according to well-defined criteria. This is in contrast with other judged activities such as beauty pageants and body building, where skill does not have to be shown.
Why is sport important to society?
What are challenges in studying sport?
Where did sport come from?
Practical - military, hunting practice
Ritual - worship and funeral rites
Symbolic - social, political functions
Just for fun...
What were the first sports?
Boxing and Wrestling
Running and Jumping
Archery, Chariot Archery, and Chariot Racing
Ball games?
Fertile Crescent
3rd millenium (3000-2000 BC)
Sources: seals, art, some written records
Activities: Wrestling, boxing, feats of strength
Royal demonstrations
Ancient Egypt
Royal displays; hunting; military sports
Sources: hieroglyphics
Sed festival
The Hittites
Tribal chiefs not a set kingdom
Frequent religious festivals
Royal displays of patronage
Military sports
Competition for prizes
How do we go from these events to the recognizable events of the ancient olympics?
_______________________________________________________________
ORIGIN OF GREEK SPORTS
Recap: Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Hittite civs:
Royal spectacles (Sed race)
Hunting
Military Sport
How do we get from there to the ancient Olympics?
The Minoans (flourished 2800-1750)
Maritime empire based on the island of Crete
Not Greek
Menos and the Menotaur, Thesius
Fresco
Sport: “an organized, competitive, and skillful physical activity requiring commitment and fair play, in which a winner can be defined by objective means. it is governed by a set of rules or customs... Non-competitive activities, for example as jogging playing catch, are usually classified as forms of recreation.”
Physical events such as scoring goals or crossing a line first often define the result of a sport. However, the degree of skill and performance in some sport such as diving, dressage, and figure skating is judged according to well-defined criteria. This is in contrast with other judged activities such as beauty pageants and body building, where skill does not have to be shown.
Why is sport important to society?
What are challenges in studying sport?
Where did sport come from?
Practical - military, hunting practice
Ritual - worship and funeral rites
Symbolic - social, political functions
Just for fun...
What were the first sports?
Boxing and Wrestling
Running and Jumping
Archery, Chariot Archery, and Chariot Racing
Ball games?
Fertile Crescent
3rd millenium (3000-2000 BC)
Sources: seals, art, some written records
Activities: Wrestling, boxing, feats of strength
Royal demonstrations
Ancient Egypt
Royal displays; hunting; military sports
Sources: hieroglyphics
Sed festival
The Hittites
Tribal chiefs not a set kingdom
Frequent religious festivals
Royal displays of patronage
Military sports
Competition for prizes
How do we go from these events to the recognizable events of the ancient olympics?
_______________________________________________________________
ORIGIN OF GREEK SPORTS
Recap: Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Hittite civs:
Royal spectacles (Sed race)
Hunting
Military Sport
How do we get from there to the ancient Olympics?
The Minoans (flourished 2800-1750)
Maritime empire based on the island of Crete
Not Greek
Menos and the Menotaur, Thesius
Fresco