Archery in Bhutan

What it is

Bhutan's national sport is archery. The kingdom declared it so in 1971, the year it joined the United Nations, and the government has promoted it since. Every village has its own field. Matches are played on religious and public holidays, at local tsechu festivals, between ministries and departments, and between village, district and regional sides. The tournaments have become a draw for visitors too. Bhutan also sends an archery team to the Olympic Games and has competed there since 1984.

Bows and targets

Traditional bows are bamboo, and so are most arrows, though reeds are also used. Feather vanes are bound on, and arrowheads are metal. A quiver may be wooden, covered in hide, with a woven strap. The target stands about 145 metres away. Cut from wood and painted brightly, it measures roughly three feet tall and eleven inches wide, and the centre is called a karay. Thirteen players make a team, shooting two arrows one way and then the other. Twenty-five points wins, but scoring is complicated, so a match can stretch over several days.

Words and songs

Scoring is only part of it. Archers trade taunts and boasts in a contest called kha shed, a test of wit and literary skill, and a barb is expected to be answered with a better one. Women sing symbolic songs for their husbands and favourites, and mock rivals with jokes and gestures meant to distract them. One proverb says archery and discus are for men and songs and dances for women, yet women have long taken part. Two well known modern archers, Dorji Dema and Tshering Chhoden, are women.

Origins and stories

Bows and arrows have long mattered in the highlands, for hunting and for war. The story is told of the monk Lhalung Pelgyi Dorje, who hid a bow in his sleeve during a dance for the Tibetan king Langdarma and killed him. In the fifteenth century the arrows of the lama Drukpa Kunley were linked to his prophecies. From 1616 to 1907, when the country was ruled by clergy, there was no standing army, so people were armed with bows. A commander was called a dapon, or arrow chief, and the title was still used by soldiers well after the monarchy was founded in 1907. Arrows were once taken as tribute at shrines to local gods, and today they are often left there as offerings.

Today and change

Modern matches use compound bows and offer cash and other prizes, with sponsors attached. They also bring injuries and sometimes deaths, and there is concern about the risk to spectators and passers by near the ranges, and about doping, including by alcohol. A tournament begun in 2010 in the name of Lyonchen Jigmi Y Thinley encourages the use of traditional bows and the growth of gewog teams. Outside Bhutan, 104 Bhutanese took part in the Druk Hybrid Archery Championship in Canberra, Australia, in March 2022, an event of twenty-one teams with five members each.

How Archery in Bhutan is kept

Teams of thirteen gather at a field, often after a night spent together in a barn or in the woods, since players are advised not to sleep beside their wives before a match. Astrologers may be hired to choose the members and to fix the time and place, using puppets called tsip. Opening events come before play, and breakfast and drink are taken. Two arrows each, then the teams turn and shoot the other way, until one side reaches twenty-five points. Wives cook, older children carry butter tea and alcohol to the range, and food is given to friends and to the match coordinators.

When and where

Matches are held on religious and public holidays, during tsechu festivals, and at Losar, the Bhutanese and Tibetan New Year. The big competitions include the Coronation National Archery tournament and the Yangphel tournament, and other majors fall at Losar. Astrologers may set the day and hour for a competition. Old matches could last a month, while modern ones usually run for several days.

Archery belongs to Bhutan as a whole, and every village has a field for it. Changlimithang Stadium in Thimphu is among the best known grounds in the kingdom. Competitions are played between ministries and departments, and between local, dzongkhag and regional teams. A Bhutanese community event, the Druk Hybrid Archery Championship, took place in Canberra, Australia, in 2022.

What Archery in Bhutan means

The bow and arrow carry meaning beyond sport. Images of gods holding them are thought especially favourable, and they are part of religious ceremonies, rituals, festivals and holidays. Arrows were once taken as tribute at shrines to local gods and are still left there as offerings. The game is also a way of meeting people, talking and building ties between communities, and older Bhutanese say that both sailing and archery call for intelligence.

Days Archery in Bhutan is marked

Questions people ask about Archery in Bhutan

See also

LosarThe Tibetan Buddhist New Year festival of renewal, offerings, and family feastsDashainA fifteen-day festival of family gatherings, blessings, and feasts across NepalKarutaJapanese playing cards from the 16th century, still raced over poems each New YearVasaloppetA 90 km cross-country ski race from Sälen to Mora, run every March since 1922

Good reading and sources

• Archery in Bhutan on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• More photos on Wikimedia CommonsPhotos and video
• Wikidata recordOpen data

It may contain mistakes. Traditions differ from one family, village and community to the next, and the people who keep them know them best. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-05.