Traditional Persian Games - Part 1
Written by Celeste Halliwell with Ali Siees
Persian Games
Perceptions around playing games in childhood are considered to promote advantages in overall growth of mental, physical, personal, and social ability that contribute to children’s learning processes. Furthermore, playing games in the classroom are presently believed to garner learning ability and personality growth through social relationships beginning in childhood [1].
The Persians believe there is an educational and economical component to games; such that social aspects of moral virtues, friendliness, and forgiveness are learned, which are rewards of playing games. Educationally, competition, cooperation, savings, and ownership are also aspects learned while playing games. The skills of playing include “strengthening to find spirit of independence, cooperation, collaboration, joy and happiness, patience, reconciliation with nature, creativity and entertainment.” Games overall, offer practice of moral values, willpower, mutual consent and their essences of flexibility [2].
Prior to the advent of computer games and many families moving into smaller apartments, children would run home after school to play traditional games. These games are known to foster teamwork, focus and creativity in light of the entertainment and social camaraderie among children [3].
Playing traditional Persian games was commonly with the intent of practicing defense tactics and strategies and the games could be played by children of all socioeconomic backgrounds that would build community. The computer/digital games of today are considered maladaptive, such that they can promote children and youth to be competitive amongst each other, that always involves a loser and often introduces violence into the game [4].
“These are some of the games we used to play as kids, at home, the back yard or in the streets” (Ali Siees). Vasati (Persian Dodgeball) وسطی
“Vasati could translate to middle group and is similar to the game of Dodgeball.”
Vasati requires a softball which is often plastic. Two teams play; one is an outer team, which divides into two groups, who are the attackers, and the other called middle team. When a player on the middle team has been hit by the ball thrown by the outer they are out. If the new center player catches the ball in the air, they can get hit once or bring back in the previously tagged player that was out” [5].
Another Persian version involves dividing the outer team into two groups placed on opposite sides of the field. A center team positions themselves in the space between them. “Players from the outer team must throw the ball at the members of the middle team to eliminate them from the game. Any player who is hit by the ball is eliminated. The players of the middle team must dodge the ball to avoid being hit. If a player catches the thrown ball before it touches the ground, one of their eliminated teammates can return to the game. The game ends when all the players in the middle team are eliminated, at which point the outer team is declared the winner. The game can continue with the teams’ switching roles. The games mentioned are not only played by children but also played by adults. It should also be noted that these games might have different rules and approaches to play in various cities of Iran” [3].
“The area used can be any shape or perimeter as long as players can maneuver around each other to avoid being hit by the ball safely. When playing indoors, if we didn’t have sponge balls to play with, our mothers used to wrap up some socks into a bundle and we’d play with that. That was our sponge ball” [5].
Health benefits of playing dodgeball includes cardiovascular fitness, enhanced strength and agility, stress relief and social interaction [6]. Both physical and motor fitness have been found to enhance executive functions of attention and working memory with visuo-spatial capacity in activities that require both aerobic activity and coordinated motor activity, especially in older adults [7]. As a sport, activities of short and fast movements requires agility, coupled with monitoring multiple actions in the environment that also employs enhanced perception, hand-eye coordination, inhibition of impulses and cognitive flexibility and adaptability for a successful game [8].
Zou/Zu (Kabedi) زو
The game of Zou is considered comparable to the Indian sport of Kabaddi and has a history of a thousand years [9].
“In Zou, players are divided into two teams: the striking team and the defending team. Two lines are marked on the ground to establish boundaries—one for each team. The striking team stands behind one line, and the defending team behind the other. Players from the striking team cross the boundary one at a time, chanting “Zouuuuu” continuously as they enter the defending side. The striker attempts to tag a defender and return to their home base without breaking the chant” [5].
This game emphasizes breath control, requiring players to expand their lungs and release air in a slow, steady stream. If the striker successfully tags a defender and returns home while chanting, the striking team earns one point, and the tagged defender is out of the game. If the striker fails to tag anyone or cannot return to base before running out of breath, no points are awarded [5].
Defenders score by preventing strikers from returning, often by holding them back until they lose their breath. However, defenders must not use violence (no hitting, pulling hair, or grabbing clothes). Players are only allowed to hold opponents by the body to prevent a safe return to the home base [5].
A second boundary line, referred to as the defenders’ safe zone, is sometimes used for more advanced play. In such cases, a successful tag must occur beyond this line, making the striker’s task more difficult [5].
In some variations of Zou, rather than being eliminated, tagged players join the opposing team. For example, if a striker tags a defender and returns safely, the defender switches sides and becomes a new member of the striking team. This version of the game demands a high level of trust and loyalty to one’s team [5].
In versions played by young children, a chain of teammates may link up to help rescue a striker who is running out of breath. This helps players gradually develop their breath control and confidence while still participating [5].
Health benefits of games such as Zou include enhancements in cardiovascular health and endurance, muscular strength and flexibility, and mental focus [10]. Zou requires players to have great agility to quickly adjust their movements to unanticipated changes in activity. Executive functions of attention and focus to opposing player’s intentions while practicing inhibition of impulsive movements in strikers is necessary to prevent the defender’s hold. Monitoring all actions in a fluid and efficient manner is necessary for a successful return to home base. Similarly, defenders must monitor actions of the strikers to prevent a strike and defend their position in the game that may also require a shift in initiation and coordination to approach the strikers. These activities improve cognitive flexibility and processing speed during reactive actions [11].
Gol Ya Pooch (Flower or Empty) گل یا پوچ
“Gol Ya Pooch is a traditional game often introduced in childhood. It involves hiding a bead or marble in one hand, while opponents try to guess which hand contains the object. The game can be played with two or more people.
A key element of Gol Ya Pooch is reading body language, players watch for subtle cues, such as hand movements or facial expressions, that might reveal where the bead is hidden.” [5].
“Numerous hand movements are usually made above and under team player’s hands to confuse the opposing teams” [5].
“When adults play Gol Ya Pooch, it is usually in larger groups, and the game can become quite competitive. It is so popular that it has even inspired television shows featuring adult players, similar in style to poker tournaments [5].
In some versions, a small bell is used instead of a bead, adding an extra challenge, players must hide the bell without letting it ring, relying on steady hands and careful movement to avoid giving away its location. This makes the game even more deceptive and suspenseful [5].
To increase difficulty, players often cheer, make noise, or create distractions to throw off opponents' focus and prevent them from guessing correctly (mostly in informal settings and friendly competitions). The size of the object, whether a stone, bead, or bell, should be appropriate for the age group and hand size of the players to ensure fairness and playability.” [5].
“Younger children or new players often sit side by side with their hands behind their backs when hiding the stone, as they may not yet have the skill to disguise its location with advanced hand movements” [5].
The game encourages players to develop intuition by learning to interpret subtle hand motions, facial expressions, and body language, all key to making successful guesses.” [5].
Playing guessing games in games of chance and intuition can enhance the learning process of observations of body language and expression to be remembered for future engagements and mastery of intuition [12]. At all times, people communicate information about emotional states, attitudes, and evaluations of what confronts us. We learn to decode these non-verbal cues to draw inferences about others in various dispositions based on sequences of non-verbal cues. Non-verbal decoding skills are an important part of intuition. A strong intuition will have a good sense of understanding the fluidity and timing of social cues that are used to gauge emotional states, personalities, intentions and attitudes, or the skill level of others present [13].
Building Brains Together graciously thanks Ali Siees for a fun-filled afternoon with facilitation of Persian games and the Lethbridge Family Centre for use of their space for game demonstrations. Ali provided many learning opportunities for building better brains.
References
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Retrieved online March, 2025 from: Molding minds and taming times: The concept of games in Iran - Tehran Times
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Taheri, L., & Chahian, G. (2015). Restoration of Traditional Children’s Play in Iranian Nomadic Societies (Case Study of Kohgilouyeh and Boyer Ahmad). Children, 2: 211-227. doi:10.3390/children2020211.
Siees, A. In discussion of game facilitation, April 2025.
Retrieved online May, 2025 from: Health Benefits of Dodgeball - DoveMed.
Voelcker-Rehage, C., Godde, B., & Staudinger, U.M. (2011). Cardiovascular and coordination training differentially improve cognitive performance and neural processing in older adults. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 5: 1-12.
Friebe, D., Sieland, J., Both, H., Giesche, F. (2024). Validity of a motor–cognitive dual‐task agility test in elite youth football players. Eur J Sport Sci. 2024;24:1056–1066. DOI: 10.1002/ejsc.12153.
Retrieved online March, 2025 from: Traditional games of Iran - Wikiwand.
Retrieved online May, 2025 from: Health Benefits of Kabaddi - DoveMed
Büchel, D., Gokeler, A., Heuvelmans, P., & Baumeister, J. (2022). Increased cognitive demands affect agility performance in female athletes- Implications for testing and training of agility in team ball sports. Perceptual and Motor Skills,129 (4):1074–1088. DOI: 10.1177/00315125221108698.
Kelley, T.D., McNeely, D.A., Serra, M.J. & Davis, T. (2021). Delayed judgements of learning are associated with activation of information from past experiences: A neurobiological examination. Psychological Science, 32 (1): 96-108.
Leiberman, M.D. (2000). Intuition: A social cognitive neuroscience approach. Psychological Bulletin, 126 (1): 109-137.