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Origin of Tennis

Although not directly related to medicine, I decided to explore the origin of tennis, which I find from my own personal experience, to be a fantastic sport for physical health and mental health. My Varsity season recently ended after an exciting season (and an unusual one with masks and all) that ended with a close semifinal loss to two-time State champs, Acton-Boxboro. The thought of having to wait another nine months for tennis season made me nostalgic, and I decided to write a blog about tennis exploring how and when the sport started and if it existed in the Classical world.

Turns out, tennis was not played in its current form during the Classical period, but there were similar games played by the ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans that can be considered precursors to tennis. The name tennis itself is thought to be derived from the ancient Egyptian town Tinnis, while the Arabic word for the palm of the hand, rahat, is thought to have led to the word racket (or racquet as some prefer). All of this is rather speculative, and a bit of a stretch in my opinion. 

Egyptian tomb painting depicting some sort of ball sport

The Romans are known to have played a ball sport called Harpastum, which in turn was derived from a Greek game called phaininda, and it involved considerable speed, agility, and physical exertion, quite similar to modern-day tennis. The great physician Galen (I knew there would be a connection to ancient medicine) was apparently a big fan of Harpastum, writing that it was "better than wrestling or running because it exercises every part of the body, takes up little time, and costs nothing." He also added that it offered "profitable training in strategy."  

Relief showing Romans playing Harpastum

The first evidence of actual tennis, however, comes from much later  -- around the 11th or 12th century -- when French monks engaged in a game called Jeu de Paume meaning game of the palm (they used the palm rather than a racket to toss the ball). They reportedly cried tenez, when they tossed the ball to the opponent, which means "to take" in French, suggesting that it could have led to the name of the game. From France, it spread rapidly to England and soon became a popular sport throughout Europe, and finally made it to the US sometime in the late 1800s.


Sources:

http://ftptennis.net/ftp-tennis-college/ftp-tennis-college-courses/fundamentals-of-tennis-courses/ten-103-history-tennis-2/ten-103-history-tennis/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harpastum

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