Ecuador

This South American country is located on the equator and has borders with Colombia and Peru. With a population of 13,700,000 (2007), about 2 million live in the port city of Guayaquil, and 1.4 million live in Quito, the country's capital. Descendants of the Spanish account for only 7 percent of the population, with an additional 3 percent being of African descent. Many indigenous customs and games survive. These include Inca games that involve flipping counters—originally made from clay, but now more often from brightly colored plastic. Picha, another Inca game, involving dice, was also common, as were the two Inca board games, Tacanaco and Chuncara. Both of these involve throwing dice and moving colored beans, seeds, or in coastal regions, small shells, to various parts of the board.

Jívaro music, played by many indigenous people, involves flutes made from hollowed pieces of wood or bones from llamas. Archaeologists have also found small spinning tops in the region, as well as statuettes, some of which were made for religious reasons, but others perhaps as toys. Boys were certainly involved in learning hunting skills, with the use of the slingshot, or archery.

The Spanish settlers in Ecuador formed a wealthy but small society and introduced European musical instruments, such as the guitar, now popular in Ecuadorian society. Board games imported from the United States, Peru, Argentina, and Europe also have a small following, including games such as Backgammon, Bridge and Chess; Chess is overseen by the Federación Ecuatoriana de Ajedrez. The small African population brought with them customs that included making percussion instruments and the marimba, with Afro-Ecuadorian music becoming increasingly popular throughout the country.

In Quito, Guayaquil, and other urban centers in the country there are youth centers that offer pool tables, and simple bowling, as well as listening to jukeboxes and playing pinball machines. With some growing prosperity in the country, these centers have increased in number, size, and popularity. Since the early 20th century, recreational soccer has been popular throughout the country. There has also long been a following for Chess—the French world champion Alexsandr Alekhine performed famous “blindfolded” Chess tournaments at Quito and Guayaquil in March 1939.