Batuque (game)
Batuque (meaning hammering from the Portuguese verb batucar, to hammer) was a Brazilian game played in Bahia in the early part of the twentieth century by African slaves which were brought to Brazil but now extinct.[1] A similar game, pernada, was popular in Rio de Janeiro about the same time. Players stand in a circle; one player stands in the center in a defensive position, and another moves around him, suddenly attacking. The attacking player tries to throw the defending player to the ground with blows from his legs. Mestre Bimba's father was a champion of batuque, and research seems to indicate that Mestre Bimba incorporated some techniques into his Capoeira regional courses.[1]
Batuque in present
There are efforts to resurrect Batuque (and leg wrestling in general) as a modern sport.[2]
References
- Gerard Taylor, Capoeira: The Jogo de Angola from Luanda to Cyberspace, Volumen 2
- "batuque".
Further reading
Capoeira: Roots of the Dance-Fight-Game, by Nestor Capoeira, ISBN 1-55643-404-9.