Evedada -- A Traditional Ewe Game

 July 22, 2025 Tuesday

It rained all morning, so we could not really do any serious lexical recordings.  It was a tropical raining, beating down heavily. The background noise on the recordings was just too great. Instead, we decided to play the game evedada (eve-throw-throw), which is a traditional game amongst Ewe boys and men. We got a video of the game. The players had a great time.

Here are my notes. This is the first time I have studied the game, so there are probably a few misunderstandings.

Evedada

1. Game is called evedada, meaning eve-throw-throw.

2. The game is played with the seed of a fruit that grows on vines in the forest. It looks a lot like an acorn in size and shape and color. I have been unable to find the English or scientific names for the seed. 

3. It is mainly played by boys, although girls can join in. When we played today, there were two teams, each with one male and one female. 

4. It is usually played during te-za (yam-festival), also during school vacation.

5. For te-za (festival of yams), they ring the bell in the public square, and the whole village comes to watch it being played.

6. It is played Saturday evening, before the main activities of the festival, which starts on Sunday.

7. For our game, each team had 11 seeds, because we were playing on the porch, which had limited space. But in a real game, there are 21 seeds per team.

8. The seeds were lined up in a row of 10, with a single seed placed in front in the middle. The seed in front is called the war chief.

9. For our little game on the porch, the lines were only around three meters apart. But more generally, the two lines are around 10 meters apart.

10. It makes no difference which team starts. The starting team has two additional seeds. They shoot those seeds to hit the seeds on the opposing side.

11. Teams alternate shooting seeds. For example, if one team has collected five shooting seeds, they shoot all of them. Then other team starts shooting.

12. If there are two members on a single team, they divide the seeds, and each member sheets half of them.

13. When you shoot a seed, you stay behind your own line.

14. If you shoot a seed, and it does not cross the middle line (separating the two sides), then you can shoot again. If it crosses the middle line, but does not reach the opposing team’s seeds, then it is for the other team to take.

15. Skilled players spin the seed in some way, either with one hand or two hands. The spinning seems to help make the seed hit other seeds.

16. If you shoot and hit a seed, then the two seeds are returned to you (the shooting seed and the hit seed), and you get to play again right away (with both seeds).

17. If you hit the war chief, then three seeds are returned to you. You get to shoot those right away.

18. If your war chief is hit, and you do not have three to return to the other team, the other team will repeat shooting three times.

19. If you hit the war chief of the other team, then you cannot show your teeth. If you show your teeth, then the other team replaces their lost war chief with a new one. In particular, you cannot smile or talk because that would involve showing your teeth.

20. Once you hit another seed (after hitting the war chief), you can show your teeth again.

21. When it is your turn to start shooting, you click two seeds together, and say akpe Do. The other team responds agO. 

22. If you forget to say akpe Do, and if the other team has hidden a seed away, they can show it. When they show it, your team needs to give all their shooting seeds to the other team. Then, the other team will start their turn again.

23. If the other team is about to shoot, you can shout mimitoliE loudly. It is an attempt to make them miss. The game is generally a bit loud and boisterous.

24. Once one of the team loses all their seeds (in the original set-up of 11 seeds), the other team wins.

25. You play twice. After the first time, the two teams switch sides. If somebody wins both matches, they win. Otherwise, it is a draw.

26. If the war chief was the last one hit, then when you change sides, the team that won cannot show their teeth until they hit another seed.