ASTANA – The board for the Togyzkumalak (nine pellets) game was taken to space on Sept. 9 to celebrate the Togyzkumalak Day and the fifth World Nomad Games and returned to Earth the same day.
Photo credit: The directorate of the fifth Nomad Games.
The traditional Kazakh board game, also known as the “chess of the steppes” or the “algebra of the shepherds,” fosters math and strategic thinking skills as players try to collect pellets in the game holes in such a way that collect as many pellets as possible into one’s kazan (cauldron).
“One of the oldest logical games of humanity conquers not only the minds of people on Earth, but also goes beyond its borders. This symbolic step emphasizes the importance of preserving and promoting the cultural heritage of nomads in the world of high technology. This is the only board game that has visited the stratosphere,” said President of World Togyzkumalak Federation Alikhan Baimenov, reported Kazinform.
The first games of togyzkumalak were held in the Kazakh capital on Sept. 9 at 9:09 a.m. as part of the fifth World Nomad Games.
The togyzkumalak tournament involves 114 participants from 41 countries, including Africa and the Arab countries, Bangladesh, China, Colombia, France, Germany, Great Britain, Latvia and the United States.
In 2020, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) inscribed togyzkumalak on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
