sumo

—sumoist, n.

/sooh"moh/, n.

a form of wrestling in Japan in which a contestant wins by forcing his opponent out of the ring or by causing him to touch the ground with any part of his body other than the soles of his feet, contestants usually being men of great height and weight.

[1895-1900; < Japn sumo, earlier suma(f)u to wrestle]

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Japanese form of wrestling.

A contestant loses if he is forced out of the ring (a 15-ft circle) or if any part of his body except the soles of his feet touches the ground. In sumo, a wrestler's weight, size, and strength are of the greatest importance, though speed and suddenness of attack are also useful. The wrestlers, who are fed a special protein diet and may weigh over 300 lbs (136 kg), wear only loincloths and grip each other by the belt. Sumo wrestling is an ancient sport with a complex system of ranking; at the top of the hierarchy is the yokozuna ("grand champion"). Lengthy rituals and elaborate posturings accompany the bouts, which are extremely brief, often lasting only a few seconds.

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▪ people

      Mesoamerican Indian people of the eastern coastal plain of Nicaragua, closely related to the neighbouring Miskito people. Their language is thought by some authorities to be related to the Chibchan family. The Sumo are agricultural, their staple crop being sweet manioc (yuca). They also grow corn (maize), sweet potatoes, squash, tomatoes, and beans. Cultivation is of the slash-and-burn pattern; planting is done with the digging stick. They live in small villages; traditional housing consisted of communal dwellings, although single-family thatched dwellings are now more common. Among their crafts are basketry, weaving, pottery, and the making of bark cloth. Their clothing is semitraditional; commercial cloth and European styles are becoming common. They believe in spirits associated with nature, and each village usually has a shaman who can placate malevolent spirits and free sick people from their influence. There is a well-developed oral literature, consisting mainly of mythology and history. See also Miskito. Early 21st-century estimates of the Sumo population range from roughly 7,400 to more than 11,000 individuals.

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