Bukh

Bökh

Member Organization(s)

Introduction

Mongolian wrestling Bökh is a traditional Mongolian sport that has existed in Mongolia for centuries, and features no weight categories, unlike other wrestling. Bökh is Mongol for “wrestling”, and is one of Mongolia’s age-old “Three Manly Skills - horseback riding, archery, and wrestling”.

The object of a match is to get opponent to touch his back, knee, or elbow to the ground without a time limit. Each wrestler must wrestle once per round, and the winners move to the next round. A variety of throws, trips, and lifts are employed to topple opponent in both versions. In addition, striking, strangling, or locking is illegal in both varieties.

The technical rules between the Mongolian version and Inner Mongolia have some divergence. In the Inner Mongolian version, touching any body part other than the feet on the ground means defeat, and the Inner Mongolians may not touch their opponent's legs with their hands, whereas, in Mongolia, grabbing opponent's legs is completely legal.

History

Cave mural in Bayankhongor Province, Mongolia, dating back to 7000BC, the Neolithic age shows two naked men grappling surrounded by crowds. The art of Bökh appears on bronze plates discovered in the ruins of the Xiongnu empire (206 BC–220 AD). Originally, Bökh was a military sport intended to provide mainly strength, stamina, and skills training to troops. Genghis Khan (1206–1227) and all the later Emperors of the Mongol Empire (1206–1368) and also the Emperors of later Khanates were keen to support the sport for this reason so wrestling events were included in local festivals or Naadam. The Manchu dynasty (1646-1911) Imperial court held regular wrestling events, mainly between Manchu and Mongol wrestlers. It became a key factor when deciding the candidate rankings in imperial martial exams, and is one of the most popular sports in Mongolia till now.

References

“Mongolian Wrestling”. Wikipedia.

Nicholas Baldo (28 Tagus 2012). “Mongolia’s Three Manly Skills, the Olympics, and Genghis Khan”. Geo Currents.