Varpa is an outdoor game of physical skill that allegedly dates back to the

Viking Age The Viking Age (about ) was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonising, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. The Viking Age applies not only to their ...

and survived in

Gotland Gotland (; ; ''Gutland'' in Gutnish), also historically spelled Gottland or Gothland (), is Sweden's largest island. It is also a Provinces of Sweden, province/Counties of Sweden, county (Swedish län), Municipalities of Sweden, municipality, a ...

. It is similar to

boules Boules (, ), or ''jeu de boules'', is a collective name for a wide range of games similar to bowls and bocce in which the objective is to throw or roll heavy balls as closely as possible to a small target ball, called the ''jack''. 'Boules' its ...

and horseshoes but is played with a flat and heavy object called a "varpa" instead of balls. Varpas used to be well-shaped stones, but nowadays, aluminium is more popular. A varpa can weigh between . The object of the game is to throw the varpa as close to a stick as possible. The stick is away for women and away for men. The game can be played individually or in teams. No official nationally sponsored varpa teams exist; however, unofficial leagues are growing in popularity among youth in suburban areas of Sweden and Norway. "Varpa" is an old word which simply means "to throw". Varpa is one of the disciplines at the annual

Stånga Games The Stånga Games (in Swedish Stångaspelen), also referred to as the "Gotland Olympic Games", is an annual sports competition in Stånga on the Swedish island of Gotland. The first Stånga Games were held on 27 July 1924. The games are held duri ...

(''Stångaspelen'').

References

Games of physical skill Gotland {{sport-stub

See also

References