![]() Each drops a seed into the next house and continues clockwise depositing one seed into every house thereafter. The main method of play has rules as described below.īoth players begin simultaneously by scooping up all the seeds in any house on their side. The objective of the game is to capture more seeds in the storehouse than one's opponent. Seven seeds are placed in each small hole called 'houses' except for the players' storehouse. In Southeast Asia, cowrie shells and tamarind seeds are the most common. In Indonesia, the holes are called anak ("child"), while the larger store holes are called indung ("mother").Ī total of 98 pieces are used in the two sets of seven board version. Each player controls the seven holes on their side of the board, and their score is the number of seeds in their right-hand big hole called storehouse. The Sungka board has fourteen holes in two sets of seven (some have ten holes in two sets of five, some have eighteen holes in two sets of nine), plus an additional bigger hole for each player. The second series Malaysian Ringgit 10 sen coin has a Congkak board on the reverse in recognition of the long history of congkak in Malaysia. This prehistoric dakon stones is unrelated to the game and were probably employed in ceremonies to propitiate ancestors. These stones have rows of 4 or 5 cup-shaped holes and two holes at each end, a formation which has much in common with that of the similarly named game in Java. In Java, the term "dakon stone" refers to the similarly pitmarked stones from the bronze-iron age period of Indonesia. Beside the Malays, the Indian Peranakan also enjoy playing Congkak. ![]() In the early days, it was thought that this game was for the king and family and palace residents, however later it spread to the general population of the kingdom. It is believed to have spread throughout Malay world through merchants via Malacca, an important trading post at that time. The game was likely introduced to Southeast Asia by Indian or Arab traders in the 15th century. The oldest mancala game boards were found in a ruined fort of Roman Egypt and date back to the 4th century AD. HistoryĪ boat-shaped dakon, a name for Congkak in Java which is actually a name for a bronze-iron age rock tool The word congkak or congklak also means cowrie shells, used in the game. It is regarded that an efficient player who mentally calculates a few steps in advance will have an advantage in collecting points to win the game. The word congkak is believed to originate from old Malay "congak", meaning "mental calculation" which is mainly practiced in this game. Congkak boards are often made of teak or mahogany wood are often elaborately carved into various shapes such as naga or birds. A swan-shaped Malaysian congkak in the National Museum of MalaysiaĬongkak (Jawi: چوڠكق Malay pronunciation: ) or Congklak is a mancala game of Malay origin played in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Brunei and Southern Thailand.Ĭlose variants are Dakon or Dhakon (Java), Sungka (Philippines), Chongka' (Marianas), Jogklak (interior of Java) Dentuman Lamban (Lampung), Mokaotan, Maggaleceng, Aggalacang or Nogarata (Celebes), Chonka (Sri Lanka) and Naranj (Maldives).Ĭongkak, which is often considered a game for girls, has simple rules that allow the boards to have different numbers of holes.
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