Tug of war requires both sides to pull the rope. Why is this game called tug-of-war?

Tug-of-war is an antagonistic sports and entertainment activity. The two sides are equal in number, pulling a thick rope to compete for strength. This activity has a long history in China and reached its most prosperous period in the Tang Dynasty. When this competition was named "Tug of War", it was generally believed that it began in the Tang Dynasty. More controversial is: Why did the name tug-of-war rise? What special historical information does this name contain?

Some people think that its name is the origin of Chu people's tradition of teaching war on water. There are two explanations in this respect: first, the symbol used to judge the victory or defeat is the "river" served by the boundary flag, that is, "holding the long flag, advancing in China", and pulling the rope to cross the river boundary means pulling the "river"; The second is to mark the center of the rope as "river", and the winner pulls the "river". It can be seen that tug-of-war is the image expression of competition rules. In the tug-of-war of Mulao nationality in modern Guangxi, the middle line is called "boundary river".

The second view is that the name of tug-of-war may be influenced by Xiang Yu's Zhuang language, describing that "more than a thousand people held hands and the audience was shocked" (Tang Yulin). Tang Xuesheng's Tug-of-War Fu says, "You must believe in the spirit of a big country!" It is a summary of the original meaning of tug-of-war. The third view holds that tug-of-war originates from the ritual of people praying for a bumper harvest.

Tang Xuanzong's Preface to Watching Tug-of-War Folk Drama vividly describes the scene of tug-of-war. The preface says: "If this drama is popular, there will be a bumper year. So, I ordered Zhaojun to retire. When introducing the custom of tug-of-war in Jingxiang area, Geography of Sui Shu also said: "Popular clouds are tiring to win, attracting prosperity. "From the point of view that it is usually carried out in spring, the direct purpose is to pray for rain, so the original intention of tug-of-war should be to pull Tianhe to make it flow backwards. When the ancients held a tug-of-war competition, the audience was shocked by the noise. The purpose is to show the great power of human resources returning to heaven. The minister of Wu Zetian's reign said that the poem "Tug of War" said: "The long rope is the sky, and the long rope is used to pull a hundred plays in spring, and God's will is in autumn." The essence of this custom and its naming has been roughly pointed out.