Hagoita (羽子板｢はごいた｣) are the wooden paddles used to hit shuttlecocks (羽子 pronounced hago ｢はご｣ or hane ｢はね｣), traditionally made of soapberry seeds and bird feathers, that are used to play the traditional Japanese pastime called

hanetsuki is a Japanese traditional game, similar to racket games like badminton but without a net, played with a rectangular wooden paddle called a ''hagoita'' and a brightly coloured shuttlecock, called a ''hane''. Often played by girls at the New Y ...

during the

New Year New Year is the time or day currently at which a new calendar year begins and the calendar's year count increments by one. Many cultures celebrate the event in some manner. In the Gregorian calendar, the most widely used calendar system to ...

. The paddles are decorated with various images, sometimes executed in relief, of women in

kimono The is a traditional Japanese garment and the national dress of Japan. The kimono is a wrapped-front garment with square sleeves and a rectangular body, and is worn left side wrapped over right, unless the wearer is deceased. The kimono ...

kabuki is a classical form of Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily-stylised performances, the often-glamorous costumes worn by performers, and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers. Kabuki is thought to ...

actors, and so on. Japanese people think playing hanetsuki is a way to drive away evil spirits because the movement of the hagoita is similar to the ''harau'' action (a Japanese expression meaning “to drive away”). Thus playing hanetsuki with hagoita is often used as a charm against evil.

History

Hagoita were introduced into Japan during the

Muromachi period The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate (''Muromachi bakufu'' or ''Ashikaga bakufu''), which was officially established in 1338 by t ...

(1336–1573) from

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

China. In the

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteriz ...

(1603–1868), ''oshie-hagoita'' were designed with images of elegantly made-up kabuki actors (''oshie'' meaning raised cloth pictures). They were made using '' washi'' or cloth cut out in the shape of flowers and people and pasted onto the paddle stuffed with cotton to give them a three-dimensional appearance. Over time, hagoita were not only used as game equipment but also as popular gifts and collectibles. During the Edo and

Meiji period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

, many different kinds appeared; some high-quality paddles even used gold leaf and silver foil. With the industrial revolution, improved manufacturing technology promoted the development of hagoita. Also, among farmers, producing hagoita was a popular off-season side business. After World War II, hagoita became popular decorations and souvenirs for locals and tourists. At present, hagoita are not limited to featuring portraits of kabuki actors but also of movie and TV stars and of famous athletes. For 350 years, an annual hagoita market has been held at the Sensō-ji temple in Tokyo. Operating from December 17 to 19, it attracts a large number of customers and also marks the end of the old year and the beginning of the new.

References

{{Authority control Japanese folk art Japanese woodwork Sports equipment