Karuta (かるた, from Portuguese carta ["card"])[1] are Japanese playing cards. Playing cards were introduced to Japan by Portuguese traders during the mid-16th century. These early decks were used for trick-taking games. The earliest indigenous karuta was invented in the town of Miike in Chikugo Province at around the end of the 16th century. The Miike karuta Memorial Hall located in Ōmuta, Fukuoka, is the only municipal museum in Japan dedicated specifically to the history of karuta.[2][3]
Karuta packs are classified into two groups, those that are descended from Portuguese-suited playing cards and those from e-awase.[4] E-awase originally derived from kai-awase, which was played with shells but were converted to card format during the early 17th century. The basic idea of any e-awase karuta game is to be able to quickly determine which card out of an array of cards is required and then to grab the card before it is grabbed by an opponent. It is often played by children at elementary school and junior high-school level during class, as an educational exercise.
- ^ Sakomura, Tomoko (2004). Asian Games: The Art of Contest. New York: Asia Society. pp. 267–269.
- ^ Omuta City Miike karuta, history museum. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
- ^ Miike Playing Cards and History Material Museum. Retrieved 22 February 2018.
- ^ Mann, Sylvia (1990). All Cards on the Table. Leinfelden: Deutsches Spielkarten-Museum. pp. 193–200.