Gonggi facts for kids

Gonggi
Plastic gonggi stones.
Quick facts for kids Korean name
Hangul	공기 or 공기놀이
Revised Romanization	gonggi or gongginori
McCune–Reischauer	konggi or kongginori

Gonggi (Korean: 공기) is a super fun and popular Korean children's game. It's traditionally played with five or more small, grape-sized pebbles. But today, most kids use colorful plastic stones instead of finding real pebbles. You can play Gonggi by yourself or with your friends.

The little stones used in the game are called gonggitdol (공깃돌). Since you only need a few stones and a flat surface, you can play this game almost anywhere! Similar games are played in other parts of the world too. In Nepal, it's called 'gatti'. In South India, especially Tamil Nadu and Kerala, it's known as "kallu," which means "stones." The rules are pretty much the same!

Gonggi has different names depending on where you are in Korea. In North Gyeongsang Province, it's called Jjagebatgi. In South Gyeongsang Province, it's known as Salgu. And in South Jeolla Province, people call it Datjjakgeoli.

How to Play Gonggi: The Basics

The game usually starts with players tossing the stones into the air from their palm. While the stones are in the air, you quickly flip your hand over. Then, you try to catch the stones on the back of your hand. The player who catches the most stones gets to go first!

Level 1: Picking Up One Stone

• First, throw all the stones onto your playing surface.
• Pick one stone to throw up into the air.
• While that stone is airborne, quickly pick up one stone from the ground.
• Then, catch the stone you threw up.
• Keep repeating these steps until you've picked up all the stones one by one.

Level 2: Picking Up Two Stones

• Throw the stones onto the playing surface again.
• This time, when you throw one stone into the air, you need to pick up two stones from the ground at once.
• Then, catch the airborne stone.
• Repeat until all stones are picked up in pairs.

Level 3: Picking Up Three and One

• Throw the stones onto the playing surface.
• You'll pick up the stones in two groups.
• First, throw one stone up and pick up three stones together.
• Then, throw another stone up and pick up the last single stone.
• Catch the airborne stone each time.

Level 4: Gathering All Four

• Throw one stone into the air.
• Quickly place the other four stones together on the surface.
• Catch the stone you threw up.
• Now, toss that same stone into the air again.
• While it's airborne, pick up all four clustered stones from the ground.
• Finally, catch the stone you threw up.

Level 5: Scoring and Tricks

• Toss all the stones from your palm into the air.
• As they fly, quickly flip your hand over and catch them on the back of your hand.
• Then, throw the stones from the back of your hand into the air again.
• Catch them in your palm. The number of stones you catch is your score for this turn!
• There are some cool tricks you can do in this level, like "The Dragon" or "The Clap–Toss." But these are usually not allowed in official games.

Special Tricks in Level 5

• The Dragon: When the stones are in the air, flip your hand over to catch some stones. Then, quickly flip your hand back and catch the rest of the stones. This trick doubles your score!
• The Clap Toss: As the stones are flying in the air, quickly clap your hands together before catching the stones. This trick also doubles your score!

Crisis Mode: A Challenge!

The "Crisis" part of the game makes things harder! When a player reaches a certain score, they have to go through a "crisis" round. In Korea, crisis scores are often multiples of 5 (like 5, 10, 15) or numbers that include 3, 6, or 9 (like 3, 6, 9, 13, 16, 19). When you hit a crisis score, the rules change a bit:

Crisis Level 1: Opponent's Choice

• You throw the stones onto the playing surface.
• But unlike the normal game, another player gets to choose which stone you have to throw up first!
• They will often pick the stone that's hardest for you to grab without touching others. For example, if two stones are touching, they might pick one that forces you to separate them carefully.
• The rest of the steps are the same: pick up one stone while the first is airborne, then catch it.

Crisis Levels 2 & 3: Still Their Choice

• Just like in Crisis Level 1, another player chooses the first stone for you to throw up.
• The rest of the steps for picking up stones (two at a time for Level 2, or three and one for Level 3) stay the same.

Crisis Level 4: The Scatter Shot

• You cover the five stones with your hand and shake them on the ground.
• Another player shouts "stop!" and you stop shaking.
• One of the other players carefully picks up one stone.
• They then throw that stone at the other four stones, trying to make them scatter far apart.
• You then pick up the stone they threw.
• Now, you continue Level 4 as usual: throw that stone up, grab the other four scattered stones, and catch the airborne stone. The more they scatter, the harder it is!

Crisis Level 5: Even or Odd Catch

• Before you toss the stones into the air, other players choose "even" or "odd."
• When you catch the stones on the back of your hand, you must catch the chosen amount.
• For example, if they call "odd," you must catch 1, 3, or 5 stones.
• If you don't catch the correct number, your turn ends, and the stones go to the next player. You'll have to try Level 5 again on your next turn.

Snail: A Beginner's Game

"Snail" is a simpler game often taught to younger kids before they learn Gonggi. The main difference is how you pick up the stones. In Snail, the edge of your hand must stay on the ground at all times. Instead of throwing a stone into the air, you sweep your hand in a big circle across the ground to grab the stones. The number of stones you need to grab at once is the same as in Gonggi. Snail is a great way to practice and get used to how many stones you need to pick up at each level.

Genius Gonggi: For Experts

This game is for players who are really good at Gonggi! The big difference is that you don't just throw one stone into the air. Instead, you throw all the stones you are holding into the air! After throwing them, you quickly grab other stones from the ground. Then, you catch all the stones you threw up. Like Snail, the number of stones you have to grab from the ground is the same as in regular Gonggi.

Playing Calls: What Not to Do

In Gonggi, there are certain things you're not allowed to do, called "playing calls." If you make one of these "mess-ups," you have to pass the stones to the next player.

• Double Touch: This happens if you accidentally touch a Gonggi stone more than once when you're trying to pick it up.
• Mushroom or Diamond: This is when a Gonggi stone lands in a tricky diagonal position. In some games, this might give you extra points or end your turn right away.
• Overhead: If you throw a Gonggi stone too high, above your head, it's an overhead.
• Drop: After you've caught all five Gonggi stones, if you accidentally drop one onto the playing surface, that's a drop.
• Fixation: In Level 5, if you purposely adjust the Gonggi stones in your hand to make them easier to catch, that's a fixation.
• Interception: If someone distracts you while you are playing, that's an interception.
• Kong: This happens if you don't catch a stone cleanly and it bounces off your hand several times before you finally catch it.
• Movement: If you move your body or position to catch or grab a stone, it's a movement. This is usually not allowed in official games, but sometimes it's okay in casual play.
• Tree Frog: In Level 3, if you pick up one stone first, and then pick up the remaining three. Remember, you're supposed to pick up the cluster of three first, then the single one!