Galah panjang explained

Galah panjang is a traditional Malaysian tag game which is played on a long, narrow field. The attacking team's goal is to cross the field and then return to the starting line to win, while the defending team's players attempt to tag the attackers to eliminate them.^[1]

History

"Galah panjang" means long pole,^[2] which refers to the central line that stretches down the court length-wise.^[3]

Galah panjang is very similar to the traditional Indian game atya-patya, which was played since at least 300 CE.^{[4] [5]}

Rules

Field

There is one central line which goes down the middle of the court length-wise, and several other lines which run perpendicular to the central line; the total number of lines equals the number of players on the defensive team.^[6]

Gameplay

Each team generally has at least four players.^{[7] [8]} The defending team stations one of its players on each of the lines before play starts, with the defenders required to remain on their designated lines throughout the game.^[9]

If an attacker steps out of the field, they are out (eliminated).

Variations

Galah panjang is known by different names in different parts of Southeast Asia, such as gobak sodor in Indonesia, patintero in the Philippines,^[10] and galah asin in West Java.^[11]

Due to the history of Dutch colonialism in the region, the game was also played by Dutch children.

Notes and References

1. Rahmadeni . Yozi . Septian . Doni . Revitalisasi Nilai Budaya Melalui Permainan Galah Panjang di Masyarakat Kepulauan Riau . PERADA . 27 June 2018 . 1 . 1 . 59–74 . 10.35961/perada.v1i1.12 . free .
2. Book: Muhamed, Saiful Lizan . The Quirky Kampung Tales Of Ijan And His Early School Years . 2022-11-30 . Austin Macauley Publishers . 978-1-3984-5455-2 . en.
3. Holtzappel . H. A. . Geddes . W. R. . THE GALAH GAME OF INDONESIA: A Study in Diffusion . The Journal of the Polynesian Society . 1953 . 62 . 1 . 1–12 . 20703357 .
4. Web site: Arasu . S. T. . 2020-07-04 . Galah Panjang and its Indian roots . 2024-01-04 . On the sport. Be part of it . en.
5. Brewster . P. G. . Langadi, Atya-Patya, sowie einige verwandte Spiele des Fernen Ostens . Geographica Helvetica . 31 March 1960 . 15 . 1 . 33–38 . 10.5194/gh-15-33-1960 . free .
6. News: Daniswari . Dini . Mengenal Permainan Galah Panjang Asal Riau, dari Cara Bermain hingga Aturan . KOMPAS.com . 19 August 2023 . id .
7. Web site: Our Favourite Games of Yesteryears . Remember Singapore . 27 January 2018 .
8. Bin Md. Zulkifli . Addy Putra . The Preservation of Malaysian Traditional Sport and Games through Design . 2022 . 10.17635/lancaster/thesis/1666 . 1346504943 .
9. News: Ismail . Melissa Suraya . How Many Of These Traditional Childhood Games Did You Play? [Part 2] ]. The Rakyat Post . 16 September 2022 .
10. News: Leandre . Kenn . Patintero Playtime : Zeenoh's Modern Take on the Classic Street Game . IGN Southeast Asia . 20 January 2013 . en-sg .
11. Pudjoatmodjo . Bambang . Hasanudin Fauzi . Amir . Salam . Sazilah . Muluk . Tio Ahmad . Maulana . Dendy Syahreza . Utilizing Digital Storytelling Structure for Developing an Electronic Traditional Game Gobak Sodor . IJAIT . 9 January 2022 . 5 . 1 . 43 . 10.25124/ijait.v5i01.3416 . free .