Meta (Forging)
Translation details
Model:mistral-large-2512.Translated text
Section titled “Translated text”A game described by Gołębiowski, still known today in Mazovia and Lesser Poland. Suitable for higher grades of primary schools and lower grades of secondary schools.
a) Meta in Pairs. Players stand opposite each other at a distance of 10—12 steps, each marking their position with a small stone pressed into the ground, which they must touch with their right foot (the left foot may move freely). One of them (chosen by lot) tries to hit the other with a ball (“to forge,” “to strike”); the other (standing, if possible, near a wall) attempts to dodge the blows. Both begin the game with an agreed number of “lives” (5, 10, 1, etc.), of which the forger loses one for each missed strike, while the forged loses one for each hit. The game continues until one of them loses all their lives. Additionally, if the forger misses, the positions and roles of both players are swapped.
b) Meta in Threes. Three players stand in a straight line at intervals as in (a); the middle one, chosen by lot, is the target of the projectiles alternately from one or the other of the outer players. Otherwise, the rules are as above. In Podolia, this variant is called kwasek.
c) Meta with Mothers (Forging). This is a game played by village boys in the Rzeszów region (Lesser Poland). On an oblong playing field, two small stones are pressed into the ground at a distance of 1–0 to 1–2 steps from each other to mark the positions. The group of children divides into two teams led by “mothers,” who stand in rows opposite each other. Lots decide which team throws first; the other team chooses its position. The first two players stand opposite each other, keeping their right foot on the pressed-in stone, while the others stand at a distance to catch the thrown ball and pass it to the player on the position. The team that throws first tries to hit the opponent with the ball. The next throw belongs to the other team, and so the opponents take turns throwing the ball at each other. A player who is hit, i.e., “forged,” steps aside, and the next in line takes their place. The team that eliminates (forges) more opponents wins. The thrower is allowed to use feints, or “tricks,” similarly to all subsequent games involving “forging.” The player standing on the stone must not lift their right foot from it, though the left foot may move and dodge.
Source scan: Kujawsko-Pomorska Digital Library, marked “Public Domain.” View PDF — page 186.
Metadata
Section titled “Metadata”- Type: game
- Traits: Not stated in the source
- Source: Eugeniusz Piasecki, Zabawy i gry ruchowe dzieci i młodzieży (1922)
- Printed pages: 181–183 / PDF 186–188
- Digital edition: Digital edition · Source record
- Open the edition at the relevant page: p. 181
- Read the source text: zgr-108