We all use the verb “spear, spear” if we want to express “running fast”. This usage is ancient in the Egyptian tongue to the extent that our ancestors in the last century used to call the horse race “the spears”.
Horse spears spread throughout the country during the reign of Sultan Ibn Qalawun, where he was present by himself to watch spears (horse racing among the Mamluks).
The spears spread among the common people, and the horse spears continued until now in Upper Egypt.
The spear has a special place in the centers and villages of Aswan Governorate, where the people of these villages and hamlets consider it a feast for them, and a great occasion to host thousands of spear-lovers.
The name Al-Marmah is given to the land of horse racing, and hundreds of acres in the desert areas near the villages organized for horse races in Aswan are a track for horses to race and compete on.
Aswan hosts 19 balls every year at the level of the five governorate centers (Aswan, Daraw, Kom Ombo, Nasr Al-Nuba, Edfu), and among the most famous football clubs in Aswan are: “Banban, Al-Kobania, Daraw, Edfu”, where the people of these places are preparing to host the people of the governorates. Aswan, Luxor and Qena, and some come sometimes from Sohag. The spears organize the Arab tribes in Aswan, the goal of which is not gain or loss, but rather races with the aim of love and acquaintance, the real gain is “love”.
This spear has been organized for more than 150 years, and they continue to do so, and children are raised to love these races. The spears always coincide with important occasions, such as birthdays or historical memories, and even national occasions.
The people of Luxor Governorate celebrate the occasion of the Prophet’s birth every year in their own way, through the establishment of the “horse spears”, which is held annually in the Al-Mansha’ Al-Amari area, and attracts the most skilled horsemen in Upper Egypt. To compete among themselves in the skill of controlling horses, and to display the skills of their purebred Arabian horses.
The spears are limited to the participation of men only, where the participants accompany the horses, and train them to move on the tones of the drum and the oboe, while the cavalry enters into a competition to race and travel the longest distances, and the cavalry is engaged in decorating their horses by placing ornaments inlaid with silver pieces, and colored stones.
The course in the celebration of the Prophet’s birthday
The “Dora” is one of the most prominent manifestations of the celebration of the Prophet’s birthday, where thousands of people gather, and they set out in a march carrying green flags, and roam all the streets of the city, accompanied by decorated cars and religious songs.
In conjunction with the horse or spear races in the villages of Aswan, a festive night is organized before the races, which is the night of spears, in which the people receive guests, slaughter calves, and hold feasts, and everyone enjoys the nights of the “piper”, palm songs, and the stick game (Al-Tahteeb), which is one of the popular games .
Despite the extinction of some popular games in centers and villages, they still exist until now, and this game has origins and rules that its owners know, and one of its most important rules is not to harm the competitor; Because the goal is to win love.
One of the conditions of the spearfish is that it be held in a large square of no less than 3,000 square meters, and that more than 80 knights from the families of the governorate and neighboring governorates participate in it, and the invitation is presented to them through the notables of the village in which it is located. Oboe, bass drum, and rabab.
