CREATIVE
MOVEMENT
Turkish
Traditional
Children Games
MİRAY ÇİRKİN
05.05.2008
Bezirgan Başı” ( Chief of Greedy Merchant) :
It is a game which can be played with minimum
10 children. Players elect two children among
them. One of them takes the name of “golden
watch”, and the other “golden bracelet”. And
then both stands face to face, hand in hand, they
raise their hands. Other children pass through
them by singing the following jingle:
Open the door Chief of Greedy Merchant
Chief of Greedy Merchant…
What do you give for your right on the door?
What do you give?
Let the person behind myself be souvenir
Let him be souvenir
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Aç kapıyı bezirgan başı
Bezirgan başı....
Kapı hakkın ne verirsin?
Ne verirsin?Ne alırsın?
Bir sıçan iki sıçan üçüncüsü dolaba kaçan
The last player in the line is caught, and asked to
his ear “do want golden watch or golden
bracelet?”. According to the answer the player
stands behind one of those who asked question.
This operation lasts until that all children are
divided in two groups. Then children of both
groups firmly hold waists of each other. Groups
which are placed at two sides of line drawn on
the ground pull each other and show their
strength. The group which passes the line is the
losing party; this group is defeated.
The game goes on in this way until the children
fed up with playing..
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Bezirgan Başı” ( Chief of Greedy Merchant) :
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Bezirgan Başı” ( Chief of Greedy Merchant) :
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Körebe
The Turkish name for this game is Korebe It was
a very popular game among 4- to 8-year old
children. The game is played by about 5 to 10
children. At the beginning of the game, one
person is chosen to be 'it' , and then the eyes of
that kid are covered with a kind of blindfold.
When the game starts, the person who is 'it' —
the blindfolded person—tries to catch the other
kids. If someone is caught, that child becomes
the new 'it' , and the game starts over. Every
child in Turkey knows this game!
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Körebe
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Leap-Frog “Birdir Bir” (Uzuneşek): This game
is played with at least 4 players. First of all two
persons among players are elected as “it”. Those
elected players stand back to back, hold their
knees bending, placing their buttocks one
another. Other players jump with parted legs
over them one by one. If they fell at the time of
jumping they become “it”.
While children jump they say “it is one one, two
two , three three, four four..” and continue to
jump. The last one however takes his place
beside the “it” players after jumping, and then he
bents.
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While jumping over the “it” sometimes joking
actions are made in counting some numbers. For
example the seventh player says “my seven is
seven, what I eat is kick”, and the “it” is kicked
by other players. While the eighth player jumps
he says “my eight is hop”, and stands on one
foot. Players who will jump after him have to
stand on their one foot. The eighth player has the
right to cause others who jump after him walk as
he wishes. While the ninth player jumps he says
“my nine is stop” and immediately after uttering
this phrase the other hopping players must stop
without moving wherever they are. When the
tenth player jumps he says “ my ten is sickle,
guns of Fatih”, and then starts blowing “its”
backs with his fist.
The game goes on similarly after determining a
new “it”.
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Leap-Frog “Birdir Bir” (Uzuneşek):
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Yağ satarım bal satarım
Players sit around a circle.Someone among
them is chosen as midwife.At the hands of the
midwife,there is a handkerchief which is knotty
around its tips.Hiding handkerchief at his hand,it
wanders around the players.Sometimes it stops
as if it leaves the handkerchief to the back of the
players.With these kind of behaviours,it tries to
surprise the players.Sitters dont look their
back.But they only try to grasp what is there on
the floor.While it turnes around the players,it
says a tongue twister.
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Yağ satarım bal satarım
Ustam ölmüş ben satrım
Ustamın kürkü sarıdır
Satsam onbeş liradır
Zam-bak zumbak dön arkana iyi bak
After telling this a few times,it leaves this
handkerchief to the back of the player.The player
who realizes this comes up and tries to chase it.İf
it catches up without sitting,till he sits,the player
hit the back of the midwife with handkerchief.If
players dont realize the handkerchief,the midwife
takes the handkerchief and hits with it.This
time,the player who doesnt realize handkerchief
become midwife.Play goes on like that.
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Yağ satarım bal satarım
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Games of Marbles
In these games, players shoot their marbles—
small, colored glass balls—at their opponents'
marbles. It they hit the other marbles, they win
them
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Before beginning the game, players drew a
triangle. The size depended on the number of
marbles children had.
After putting all marbles into the triangle,
they shot their favorite marble at the others
so that they could win some marbles by
throwing the others out of the triangle.
The game continued until all the marbles
were gone.
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The important thing is to have as many
marbles as they could. There is quite a
competition to win the most marbles The one
who won the most marbles was the leader of
the group, and everyone tried to be the
leader
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Games of Marbles
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Games of Marbles
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