Tag (also called chase, tig, it, tiggy, tips, tick, on-on and tip) is a playground game involving one or more players chasing other players in an attempt to "tag" and mark them out of play, typically by touching with a hand. There are many variations; most forms have no teams, scores, or equipment. Usually when a person is tagged, the tagger says, "It!", "Tag, you're 'It'!" or "Tag". The last one tagged during tag is "It" for the next round. The game is known by other names in various parts of the world, including "running and catching" in India, "catch and cook" in the Middle East, "lelu" in Vanuatu, and "berek" in Poland.
Origin of name The game has many different names in different parts of the UK: 'tig' in Yorkshire, Scotland, and in the North West of England; and 'it' in the South of England. In the United States the game is usually called 'tag', and in Australia it is sometimes called 'chasey' or 'tips'.
In 2018, the internet meme "How old were you when you found out ____" began circulating, which stated that the origin of the word tag was an acronym meaning 'touch and go'. Investigation by snopes.com found this to be false. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the origin of the name 'tag' is unknown, while the Oxford Dictionary of English speculates it to be a variant of 'tig', which itself is possibly a variant of 'tick'.
History Tag-like games have been played throughout history since as far back as at least the fourth century BC. The Ancient Greek poet Erinna, in her poem The Distaff, speaks of a tag-like game where one kid, the "tortoise", chases other kids, and the tagged kid becomes the new "tortoise". (See also: Ostracinda)
Indian variations of tag
Kho-kho has been played since at least the fourth century BC. Certain aspects of kho-kho and kabaddi are believed to have been mentioned in the Mahabharata, around 300 AD or before.Kho Kho, a kabaddi-like sport linked with Indian epic Mahabharata - know all about it Olympics olympics.com Atya-patya, which goes by several other names (such as Klithatu), was also mentioned as early as 300 AD or before in the Naṟṟiṇai. Langdi is believed to have been played in the Pandya dynasty, over a thousand years ago.
Some Indian variations of tag are theorized to represent certain things from ancient Indian history; for example, there is evidence to suggest that the traditional Bengali game of gollachut, in which players attempt to run out of a circular field without being tagged by opponents, may represent escape attempts by agricultural slaves during the Indus Valley Civilization.A Historical Study of the Origin and Features of Some Selected Folk Games in North Bengal Badal Roy https://ir.nbu.ac.in/
Modern history In early 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic began to spread globally, descriptions arose on social media of children playing variations of tag which involved roleplaying spreading coronavirus.
Tag competitions
Major modern competitions for tag-like games ("major competitions" being those with at least 100 million views) include World Chase Tag, Pro Kabaddi League, and Ultimate Kho Kho. As for tag variants being included in prestigious events, kabaddi has found its way into the Asian Games, and is also in the South Asian Games alongside kho-kho; both games have been proposed by the Indian government to be part of the 2036 Olympics.
Basic rules
Players (two or more) decide who is going to be "it", often using a counting-out game such as eeny, meeny, miny, moe or rock paper scissors. The player selected to be "it" then chases the others, attempting to "Tag" one of them (by touching them with the palm of a hand) as the others try to avoid being tagged. A tag makes the tagged player "it". In some variations, the previous "it" is no longer "it" and the game can continue indefinitely, while in others, both players remain "it" and the game ends when all players have become "it". This variation of the game is sometimes called "Family tip", "Infection Tag", "Manhunt", or "Zombie Tag".
Many variants modify the rules for team play or place restrictions on tagged players' behavior. A simple variation makes tag an elimination game, so that tagged players drop out of play. Some variants have a rule preventing a player from tagging the person who has just tagged them (known as "no tag-backs", "no catch-backs", "no returns", "can't tag your master" or "can't get the butcher back"), or having to wait a set amount of time before they can tag people.
Base and truce terms Players may be safe from being tagged under certain circumstances: if they are within a pre-determined area, off the ground, or when touching a particular structure. Traditional variants are Wood tag (see knock on wood), Iron tag, and Stone tag, when a player is safe when touching the named material. In most cases, a player will be able to stay in that pre-determined area indefinitely, such as “house rules” including that feature. This safe zone has been called a "gool", "ghoul", or "Dell", probably a corruption of "goal". The term "gool" was first recorded in print in Massachusetts in the 1870s, and is common in the northern states of the US. Variants include gould, goul, and ghoul, and alternatives include base and home. In the United Kingdom, the base is frequently known as "den". In much of Canada and parts of the northern United States, the state or home base of being immune from tagging is known as "times" or "T", most likely as mutilation of "time out".
Players may also make themselves safe from being tagged by the use of a truce term. When playing the game tag, some may cross fingers to let others know that they, the player, cannot be tagged. Yet, this rule may come into play only if the crossing of fingers is shown; if the fingers are not shown to the person who is it, then the crossing does not count.
If a player tags the person who is currently 'it', that player generally becomes 'it'.
Alternative terminology In some parts of Scotland, instead of saying "Tag, you're 'It'!", the call is "Tig, you're het!"
In India, the player who is "it" is referred to as the "denner".
Deciding who is "it" In addition to games like rock paper scissors that can be used to decide who is "it", some other methods are used in different parts of the world:
In parts of Asia, variations of a game known as pugam pugai or Saa Boo Three in India are played; in one variation, a group of three players are asked to face one of their hands upward or downward, and if one of them faces their hand in the opposite direction of the other two players, then that player is eliminated. This process then repeats with other players until finally, the last player eliminated in the final group of three is made to be "it". All of the players put their foot in a circle, and the last player to withdraw their foot from the circle is "it".
Bans and restrictions Tag and other chasing games have been banned in some schools in the United States due to concerns about injuries, complaints from children that it can lead to harassment and bullying, and that there is an aspect to the game that possesses an unhealthily predatory element to its nature. In 2008, a 10-year-old boy in Omaha, Nebraska, died from brain injuries suffered from falling onto a metal pole while playing tag. A school dinner lady in Dorset was left partially paralyzed after a boy playing tag ran into her in 2004; her damage claim was rejected by three Court of Appeal judges, who ruled that the boy had not broken any school rules by playing the game. In 2019, Joanne Smith, the headteacher of Rudyard Kipling Primary School & Nursery, banned the game of tag because it was too rough.
A principal who banned tag in her school criticized the game for creating a "self-esteem issue" in nominating one child as a victim, and noted that the oldest and biggest children usually dominate the game. A dislike of elimination games is another reason for banning tag. In some schools only supervised tag is allowed, sometimes with a type of tagging called butterfly tagging—a light tap on the shoulders, arms or upper back.
The president of the US National Association for Sport and Physical Education said that "tag games are not inherently bad... teachers must modify rules, select appropriate boundaries and equipment, and make sure pupils are safe. Teachers should emphasize tag games that develop self-improvement, participation, fair play, and cooperation."
Variants
British bulldog
One (or two players) starts as "bulldog", who stands in the middle of the playing area, while the other players stand at one end of the area. The aim is to run from one end of the area to the other without being caught by the bulldog. When a player is caught, they become the bulldog themself. The last player is the winner and starts as "bulldog" in the next game.
Cat and mouse
Chaos tag In chaos tag (also known as "ultimate tag", "ultimate it", or "Everybody is it"), any player may tag any other player. When a player is tagged they are declared "down", and must stay seated in the location where they were tagged. Once this happens, any players that were previously tagged by this newly downed player will be back up, and are allowed to resume tagging. The game ends when all but one player is "down". One version allows players to form alliances, that will dissolve once there is no one left but the allied players.
Chhi-chhattar One player, known as the "kite", starts off inside a circle formed by all of the other players ("cocks") holding hands, and then breaks free, with the first of the other players to tag the kite becoming the kite in the next round of play.Traditional Games, Sports & Amusements played in North Bengal and its Historical Background https://ir.nbu.ac.in/
Colored Ogre The variant is played in Japan and starts by having the "it" player, called the , announce a color; in some cases, the other players prompt the ogre by first asking "what are the different colors?" As soon as the ogre declares a color, the other players hurry to touch an object of that color, which makes them safe; customarily, there is a short delay of 10 seconds or less before the ogre may begin pursuing the others. In general, each player being pursued must find a separate object to touch, i.e., two or more players cannot be touching the same object, but some rule variations allow multiple players to touch the same object.
The first player caught and touched by the ogre before that player can touch the designated color becomes the ogre for the next round; alternatively, the ogre role may be rotated amongst the participants after a set number of rounds. If all players touch the color before the ogre can catch anyone, the ogre role does not change, and they then announce a new color. The game is best played in an environment with a variety of colors, such as a playground, and an impartial referee may be needed to judge disputes, e.g., if a specific object being touched matches the declared color. To increase the difficulty, an object may be added to the color declaration; for example, the ogre could call out "green park bench".
Cross tag In cross tag (also known as turn tag), if "it" is chasing somebody and then a third person runs in between, then "it" must chase the third person.
Duck, duck, goose
In this game, usually played by young children, the players sit in a circle facing inward. One player, the "picker" or "fox", walks around tapping or pointing to each player in turn, calling each of them a "duck", until finally announcing one of their choosing to be the "goose". The goose then rises and runs around the circle in the same direction as the picker, attempting to return to their seat before the "picker" can sit back down in the vacated spot. In Minnesota, this game is referred to as "Duck, duck, gray duck".
Elbow tag