Do you know that egg-jarping is a serious sport?  

You must have played Holi with water balloons, hitting people with balloons full of water so hard that the person gets wet. There is another game quite similar to this. The only difference is, instead of a balloon, a hard-boiled egg is used. This game is called Jarping or Egg Tapping, played primarily to celebrate Easter. In Jarping, you try cracking someone else’s boiled egg without cracking your own. The game is very popular in north-eastern England. Interestingly, a World Jarping Championship is held annually in Peterlee, Durham, each Easter since 1983. 

Rules of the game  
So let us tell you how this game is played. It's a one-on-one, knockout tournament. The two sides select their boiled eggs. One player holds his egg firmly in his hand with the pointed end above. The other player brings his egg down, so the pointed ends of the eggs connect, in a movement known as a "dunsh". Now, if either egg is cracked after the first jarp or egg tapping, the unlucky player is eliminated but if both eggs remain intact, they swap places and keep jarping until one egg gives way.  Quite obviously, the victor is the one who has a perfect, undented egg at the end. 

Behind the scenes 
Interestingly, how actually players prepare for this contest is some serious science. You would be surprised to know that people who intend to participate know which breeds of chicken lay harder eggs, and at what time. For getting competent eggs, the chickens need to be fed calcium-rich food as well as have plenty of exercises. Then, proper boiling of the eggs is also important so that they don’t break easily.  But as with any other game, this game too involves a lot of cheating; eggs with cement and even marble cores have been reported.    

History and significance 
So how did it all start? Well, Egg Tapping was practised in medieval Europe. It is believed to have played an important part in the 14th century in Zagreb (the capital city of Croatia) in relation to Easter celebrations. Since eggs represent new life and rebirth, whoever's egg doesn't break in egg tapping is thought to have good luck for the next year. 

In other cultures and languages  
The game is not unique to Croatia but also takes place in the Netherlands, Romania, Bulgaria, Egypt and even India and many more countries.  

In Assam, India, the game is called Koni-juj (Koni is egg and Juj is fighting) and is held every year on the day of Goru Bihu (cattle day). 

In Croatia, even coloured eggs are used. Everyone picks an egg to tap and the last person with an unbroken egg is declared the winner, sometimes winning a money pool. 

In the  Netherlands, the game is called ‘eiertikken’ where people carrying baskets of coloured eggs try to break the same-coloured eggs in another person's basket.  

Romania has an even more interesting show. The outsiders strike red eggs against one held by the head of the house and exchange the Paschal greeting "Christ has risen!" and "He has risen indeed!" It is believed that the person with the unbroken egg would enjoy the longest life.