Bonspiel
Encyclopedia
A bonspiel is a curling
tournament, traditionally held outdoors on a frozen freshwater loch
. The word comes from the Scottish Gaelic and means league (or alliance or household) match (or game). Though not mandatory, curling teams involved in bonspiels often wear theme costumes. This is meant to contribute to the well known "intimidation tactics" often employed by curlers.
, the most notable tournament in the world nowadays is The Brier, the Canadian
Men's Curling Championship. For Canadians, this tournament equals or nearly equals the importance of the Olympics and the World Curling Championship. Canadian
Women's Curling Championship tournament is called Scotties Tournament of Hearts
. Several Cashspiels
are played in Canada every year. The most important cashpiels are part of World Curling Tour
(WCT).
. The word spiel (Scots: game, match, competition) is sometimes used on its own to refer to an informal curling game, for example parish spiel. The most important Cashspiels
in Scotland are part of Curling Champions Tour (CCT) which was previously called World Curling Tour Europe (WCT-E).
, part of Central Otago
in the South Island
. The region is one of the few in New Zealand to have conditions suitable for outdoor curling, and is doubly suitable due to Otago
's original European settlers mainly being from Scotland. Several artificial and natural lakes around the towns of Oturehua
, Naseby
and Patearoa
provide good conditions, on average every second or third year. A bonspiel was held for the first time in six years in mid-July, 2007, on Oturehua
's Idaburn Dam and another in July 2010. There are also indoor curling rinks in Otago's main centre, Dunedin
, and in the small town of Naseby
. and open air ice rinks in Naseby
and Alexandra
.
Since Curling is believed to have originated in Scotland, it's likely that Bonspiel is a modern adaptation of the Scottish Gaelic words: "Bonn"(coin) and "Spéil"(skate) meaning "Coin Skate" or "Cornerstone
Skate"(archaic definition).
However, "Spiel" may also have been used to mean "Game" as it is in other European languages influenced by Gaelic origins.
In that case, the Scots prior to the known 15th Century history of the game may have intended the word (or words) to mean "Bonn Spiel" or "Cornerstone
Game".
Curling
Curling is a sport in which players slide stones across a sheet of ice towards a target area. It is related to bowls, boule and shuffleboard. Two teams, each of four players, take turns sliding heavy, polished granite stones, also called "rocks", across the ice curling sheet towards the house, a...
tournament, traditionally held outdoors on a frozen freshwater loch
Loch
Loch is the Irish and Scottish Gaelic word for a lake or a sea inlet. It has been anglicised as lough, although this is pronounced the same way as loch. Some lochs could also be called a firth, fjord, estuary, strait or bay...
. The word comes from the Scottish Gaelic and means league (or alliance or household) match (or game). Though not mandatory, curling teams involved in bonspiels often wear theme costumes. This is meant to contribute to the well known "intimidation tactics" often employed by curlers.
Canada
Although Bonspiels originated in ScotlandScotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, the most notable tournament in the world nowadays is The Brier, the Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
Men's Curling Championship. For Canadians, this tournament equals or nearly equals the importance of the Olympics and the World Curling Championship. Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
Women's Curling Championship tournament is called Scotties Tournament of Hearts
Scotties Tournament of Hearts
The Scotties Tournament of Hearts is an annual Canadian women's curling championship, sanctioned by the Canadian Curling Association. The winner goes on to represent Canada at the women's world curling championships. Since 1985, the winner also gets to return to the following year's tournament as...
. Several Cashspiels
Cashspiel
A cashspiel is an event in the sport of curling.A combination of the two words cash and bonspiel, cashspiel are competitive tournaments played for money. There are different types of cashspiels, some are small, with prizes in the hundreds of dollars, and others are quite sizeable, with the rewards...
are played in Canada every year. The most important cashpiels are part of World Curling Tour
World Curling Tour
The Asham World Curling Tour is a group of curling bonspiels featuring the best male curlers in the world. A Women's World Curling Tour also exists....
(WCT).
United States
The United States Curling Association (USA Curling) is the national governing body of the sport of curling in the United States. Many bonspiels are listed on the USA Curling web page, http://www.usacurl.org/. Most bonspiels in the United States are held indoors in dedicated curling facilities. Bonspiels are popular throughout the United States during curling season, which is typically October through April. Some special bonspiels are even held in the summer.Scotland
In Scotland itself outdoor bonspiels are now very rare; most lochs which formerly hosted bonspiels have rarely frozen over in recent years, for example Loch EarnLoch Earn
Loch Earn is a freshwater loch in the central highlands of Scotland, in the districts of Perth and Kinross and Stirling...
. The word spiel (Scots: game, match, competition) is sometimes used on its own to refer to an informal curling game, for example parish spiel. The most important Cashspiels
Cashspiel
A cashspiel is an event in the sport of curling.A combination of the two words cash and bonspiel, cashspiel are competitive tournaments played for money. There are different types of cashspiels, some are small, with prizes in the hundreds of dollars, and others are quite sizeable, with the rewards...
in Scotland are part of Curling Champions Tour (CCT) which was previously called World Curling Tour Europe (WCT-E).
Other European countries
Many bonspiels are held in the European countries every year. Especially Switzerland hosts multiple Curling Champions Tour events but there are tens of bonspiels outside of Scotland and Switzerland every year.New Zealand
Curling bonspiels are held when ice conditions permit in the ManiototoManiototo
The Maniototo Plain, usually simply known as The Maniototo, is an elevated inland region in Otago, New Zealand. The region roughly surrounds the upper reaches of the Taieri River and the Manuherikia River. It is bounded by the Kakanui Range to the north and the Rock and Pillar Range to the southeast...
, part of Central Otago
Central Otago
Central Otago is the inland part of the New Zealand region of Otago in the South Island. The area commonly known as Central Otago includes both the Central Otago District and the Queenstown-Lakes District to the west....
in the South Island
South Island
The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...
. The region is one of the few in New Zealand to have conditions suitable for outdoor curling, and is doubly suitable due to Otago
Otago
Otago is a region of New Zealand in the south of the South Island. The region covers an area of approximately making it the country's second largest region. The population of Otago is...
's original European settlers mainly being from Scotland. Several artificial and natural lakes around the towns of Oturehua
Oturehua
The township of Oturehua is in the Ida Valley of the Maniototo, in Central Otago, in the South Island of New Zealand.Known as Rough Ridge until 1907, the settlement stands at 500 metres above sea level, some 25 kilometres from Ranfurly, to which it is connected by both road and the Otago Central...
, Naseby
Naseby, New Zealand
Naseby is a small town, formerly a borough, in the Maniototo area of Central Otago, New Zealand. It is named after a village in Northamptonshire, England....
and Patearoa
Patearoa
Patearoa is a small settlement in inland Otago in New Zealand's South Island. It is located 20 kilometres southwest of Ranfurly, in the Maniototo and was originally known as Sowburn....
provide good conditions, on average every second or third year. A bonspiel was held for the first time in six years in mid-July, 2007, on Oturehua
Oturehua
The township of Oturehua is in the Ida Valley of the Maniototo, in Central Otago, in the South Island of New Zealand.Known as Rough Ridge until 1907, the settlement stands at 500 metres above sea level, some 25 kilometres from Ranfurly, to which it is connected by both road and the Otago Central...
's Idaburn Dam and another in July 2010. There are also indoor curling rinks in Otago's main centre, Dunedin
Dunedin
Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago Region. It is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until...
, and in the small town of Naseby
Naseby
Naseby is a small village in the District of Daventry in Northamptonshire, England.The village is 14 mi north of Northampton, 13.3 mi northeast of Daventry, and 7 mi south of Market Harborough. It is 2.4 mi from Junction 2 of the A14 road, giving it access to the national road system...
. and open air ice rinks in Naseby
Naseby
Naseby is a small village in the District of Daventry in Northamptonshire, England.The village is 14 mi north of Northampton, 13.3 mi northeast of Daventry, and 7 mi south of Market Harborough. It is 2.4 mi from Junction 2 of the A14 road, giving it access to the national road system...
and Alexandra
Alexandra, New Zealand
Alexandra is a town in the Central Otago district of the Otago region of New Zealand. It is located on the banks of the Clutha River , on State Highway 8, 188 km by road from Dunedin and 33 km south of Cromwell.At the time of the 2006 census, the permanent population was 4,827, an...
.
List of Notable Bonspiels
- The Bonspiel or the Grand MatchGrand MatchThe Grand Match, also called The Bonspiel, is an outdoor curling tournament, or bonspiel, held most recently on the Lake of Menteith in Stirling, Scotland when the weather is cold enough. Traditionally it is a match between the north and south of Scotland....
, between the north and the south of Scotland, held on a frozen loch (most recently the Lake of MenteithLake of MenteithThe Lake of Menteith , is a loch in Scotland, located on the Carse of Stirling, the flood plain of the upper reaches of the rivers Forth and Teith, upstream of Stirling. Until the early 19th century, the more usual Scottish name of Loch of Menteith was used...
, StirlingStirling (council area)Stirling is one of the 32 unitary local government council areas of Scotland, and has a population of about 87,000 . It was created under the Local Government etc Act 1994 with the boundaries of the Stirling district of the former Central local government region, and it covers most of the former...
) when the winter is cold enough. It was last held in 1979. - The Brier (Men's Senior Championship of the Canadian Curling AssociationCanadian Curling AssociationThe Canadian Curling Association is a Canadian organization responsible for encouraging and facilitating growth and development of the sport of curling. The CCA is associated with more than a dozen provincial and territorial curling associations across the country.-History:The CCA was created in...
). This is regarded by most curlers as the world's premier curling championship - The Tournament of Hearts (Canadian Ladies Curling Association Championship)
- The Men's World Curling Championship (Scotch Cup/Silver Broom) WCFWorld Curling FederationThe World Curling Federation is the world governing body for curling accreditation, with offices in Perth, Scotland. It was formed out of the International Curling Federation , when the push for Olympic Winter Sport status was made...
WCC - The Women's World Curling Championship WCCWorld Curling FederationThe World Curling Federation is the world governing body for curling accreditation, with offices in Perth, Scotland. It was formed out of the International Curling Federation , when the push for Olympic Winter Sport status was made...
- The World Junior Curling Championship (WJCC) WCFWorld Curling FederationThe World Curling Federation is the world governing body for curling accreditation, with offices in Perth, Scotland. It was formed out of the International Curling Federation , when the push for Olympic Winter Sport status was made...
- The Winter Olympics
Origin of the word "Bonspiel"
The origin of the word is primarily Gaelic which originated in Central Europe in the 5th Century B.C.Since Curling is believed to have originated in Scotland, it's likely that Bonspiel is a modern adaptation of the Scottish Gaelic words: "Bonn"(coin) and "Spéil"(skate) meaning "Coin Skate" or "Cornerstone
Cornerstone
The cornerstone concept is derived from the first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation, important since all other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure.Over time a cornerstone became a ceremonial masonry stone, or...
Skate"(archaic definition).
However, "Spiel" may also have been used to mean "Game" as it is in other European languages influenced by Gaelic origins.
In that case, the Scots prior to the known 15th Century history of the game may have intended the word (or words) to mean "Bonn Spiel" or "Cornerstone
Cornerstone
The cornerstone concept is derived from the first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation, important since all other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure.Over time a cornerstone became a ceremonial masonry stone, or...
Game".
External links
- Am Baile - Highland History and Culture - Curling Bonspiel
- Keeping the tradition of Grand Match curling alive, Royal Caledonian Curling ClubRoyal Caledonian Curling ClubThe Royal Caledonian Curling Club is the mother club of the sport of curling, and the governing body of curling in Scotland. The RCCC was founded on 25 July 1838 in Edinburgh, and granted its royal charter by Queen Victoria in 1843, after she had witnessed a demonstration of the sport played on...
- Bonspiels in the United States
- Curlingcalendar - List of international bonspiels
- BONSPEIL AT CARSEBRECK POND (1935) (archive film from the National Library of Scotland: SCOTTISH SCREEN ARCHIVE)