# bows are worldwide



## Matt6288 (Jul 29, 2005)

do u think the very first bow was invented in one place then was spread throughout the world or that it is a coincidence that it was invented by cultures all over the world??


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## toxoph (Mar 24, 2005)

Matt6288 said:


> do u think the very first bow was invented in one place then was spread throughout the world or that it is a coincidence that it was invented by cultures all over the world??


Pretty much documented it was discovered/invented independantly around the world. I've read conflicting accounts of whether it was invented in Australia. I've read some saying even 50,000 years ago but most say much more recent.

Some say it was an extension of the atla (sp) throwing spear or even the bow fire starter. 

Amazing though the diversity of the designs from everywhere or even how much they understood about archery even thousands of years ago. For example, the asians shoot on the opposite side of the bow when using a thumb release to account for the archers paradox.


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## Matt6288 (Jul 29, 2005)

ya there is a lot of diversity in designs. all the desings match the environment in which they are in so you cant really say one bow is better than the other.


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## jerrytee (Feb 5, 2005)

It was only when the Romans came along that designs of bows started to travel.


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## eric96 (Dec 13, 2004)

Well here it goes I met a very old guy at Cloverdale almost 3 years ago. this gentleman gave me a general history of pre archery and early archery. Pre archery is either spear hunting or atlael meaning spears thrown by hand or a hand held padel. now early archery is a primitive longbow or a flatbow made by ones self. This old guy also said that pre-archery and primative archery were thought up by different populations of the world not just one population.


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## Matt6288 (Jul 29, 2005)

the spear thrower i think is spelled this way "atlatl", how do u pronounce it? i have no idea :teeth:


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## Kitsap (Dec 24, 2002)

Atlatl is pronounced just the way it is spelled..... the spelling is phoenetic. I am sure that the word comes from some ancient language that had no written version so the word was simply written the way the anthropologist heard it. Happens alot when trying to record the pronunciation of some language that is substantially different than English (i.e. most non-Romantic languages). 

The most famous case of mis-pronunciation (because the foreign language in question has many nuances which the untrained ear will miss...) and, hence, mis-spelling (phoenetic spelling that is) is in the proper pronunciation of the capital of China. When President Nixon reestablished diplomatic relations with the Chinese government in the early 1970's, one of the very first thing the Chinese diplomat did was to ask that we please stop mis-pronouncing the name of their capitol city. This is why on older maps the capital of China is incorrectly spelled "Peking" instead of the more accurate phoenetic spelling of "Beijing". It was a big embarrassment to every map maker and linguist in the Western world.


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## XP35 (Oct 11, 2005)

And to think that the very moment a mind could plan and build a functional bow and arrows is the dawn of modern man. With our newfound understanding of geometry, physics, and a concept of art, we, as men, were then capable of even greater creations. I say the bow and arrow marks the dawn of mankind.


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## toxoph (Mar 24, 2005)

To quote myself from the article I wrote for Archery Focus magazine:

"The early recurves and long bows have no moving parts or gadgets yet they provided man with all he needed, food, shelter clothing and the ability to defend himself against more powerful animals. In fact, many historians place the invention of the bow and arrow just behind fire and the wheel in importance. (Hmmm, would a burning compound bow be considered all three?)." :teeth: 

http://www.neoreality.com/archery/oncollecting.htm


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