Jachigi or ja chigi is said to have originated from the game called gyeokgu, a popular sport in ancient Goryeo used for military purposes. It involved two teams holding sticks, which were used to shoot a ball in between two goal posts set up in the middle of a gyeokgu field. The game resembled the modern-day field hockey sport especially as it was also played on horseback. It was, however, included in the military service examination and training in the Joseon period. The advent of modern warfare, particularly after Joseon's war with Japan, made the gyeokgu irrelevant in armed combat and from then on, it transformed into simpler forms and spread across Korea as popular children's games. It was the basis of the shuttlecock-kicking game and the jachigi. The jachigi game denotes measuring with a stick and hitting. Ja means wooden stick, while chigi means measuring distance. To play effectively, the stick should be about 30 centimeters long and the shorter stick must be 7 centimeters.
