Kemari

For the neighborhood of Karachi, see Keamari District.

Kemari (蹴鞠) is an athletic game that was popular during the Heian (794–1185) and Kamakura (1185–1333) periods of Japan. It resembles a game of keepie uppie or hacky sack.

The game was popular in Kyoto, the capital, and the surrounding Kansai region, and over time it spread from the aristocracy to the samurai and chōnin classes.

Nowadays, kemari is played as a seasonal event mainly at Shinto shrines in Kansai. Players play in a costume called kariginu (ja:狩衣), which was worn as everyday clothing by court nobles during the Heian period.

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