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piddly
DCHP-2 (Oct 2016)
Spelling variants:tiddly, tiddly stick, piddley, tiddlywinks, pidley, piddley sticks
n. — Newfoundland, Games, dated
a children's game involving short and long sticks.
Type: 1. Origin — The term piddly describes a popular children's game played in Newfoundland that requires the equipment of one long stick, one short stick and two rocks (see the second 2013 quotation). The aim of the game is to flick, or "hook", a stick that is balancing on either two rocks or over a hole (see the 1966 quotation) as far as one can from the base (see DNE, s.v. "piddly"). If a member of the opposing team catches the stick, then the batter, or flicker, is out. The most common variation of the name piddly appears to be "tiddly" (see DNE, s.v. "tiddly"); however, other names such as "pippy", "puss and duck", "flick" or "scat" are noted (see the first 2013 quotation).
See also DNE, s.v. "piddly".
See also DNE, s.v. "piddly".
Quotations
1920
Maybe they'll just let him write memoirs just like a regular exile or play tiddlywinks. The insert is a picture of William before he gave his helmet and sword to the palace junkman.
1966
TIDDLY was a game for both boys and girls roughly between the ages of seven and fourteen. It was played outdoors from early spring through to the end of spring season -- either around the house, or on the harbour ice, or "over on the hill." The game required a long stick, a short stick and a hole. The long stick was usually a picket approximately one inch in diameter and measuring roughly four feet in length. [...] The short stick or "tiddly stick" was usually thicker than the long one ...
1974
As Mark Burnes puts it, "...it doesn't really matter what program emphasis you have.. I think we could play tiddly winks for the whole month of July with the kids, and the important thing to me is that they learned some of the basics of what it is to be happy, what it is to share and to become resourceful [...]"
2001
Before he came, we thought the only games kids played were rounders, hide and seek, and piddley (a stick game). Jim introduced us to hoist your sails and run, an innovative approach to our bland hide and seek.
2003
My dad, Nicholas, was born in August 1916 to two hard-working parents, Thomas and Mary Ann Roche. His early childhood days consisted mainly of swimming, a game called piddley sticks, or just playing with friends.
2013
Well, there wasn’t a big lot to do, I mean, you’d make your own, whatever, game. One game we use to play, I don’t know if you’ve
ever heard, called piddly. You put two rocks here and you put a stick across it. You have another stick and you’d hook it and the fellow who was there, he caught it, and you were out. And if he didn’t catch it, you took your stick and measured where your stick pitched and that’s, that was the score.
2013
One very popular traditional game in Newfoundland that was played outside is Tiddly. This game had a range of different names, and was also known as “Tidley”, Tidley Stick”, “Pidley”, Pidley Stick”, “Pippy”, “Puss and Duck”, “Puss”, “Flick” or “Scat”. [...] Generally, this game seems to be traditionally played by boys, and fell out of popularity sometime around the mid 1960s.
References
- DNE