Historical Dictionary of Wrestling
By (author) John Grasso
Publication date:
06 March 2014Length of book:
444 pagesPublisher
Scarecrow PressISBN-13: 9780810879256
Wrestling as a legitimate contest is one of the oldest, if not the oldest form of sport. There are cave drawings in France that depict memorable matches, which are over 15,000 years old. Egyptian and Babylonian reliefs depict wrestling bouts where wrestlers are using most of the holds known to the modern-day sport. Wrestling was also a big part of ancient Greek literature and legend and historical records of sport indicate that wrestling under various sets of rules was contested at the Ancient Olympic Games in Greece. Today’s modern wrestling is a form of "sports entertainment" in which highly skilled athletes enact wrestling matches in such a way so that their opponents do not get hurt and the matches' endings are scripted (although the audience is not aware of the script).
This Historical Dictionary of Wrestling covers the history of Wrestling through a chronology, an introductory essay, appendixes, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 600 cross-referenced entries on important amateur and professional wrestling, wrestling personalities, announcers, managers and promoters from all eras, and wrestling organizations. This book is an excellent access point for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about the sport of Wrestling.
This Historical Dictionary of Wrestling covers the history of Wrestling through a chronology, an introductory essay, appendixes, and an extensive bibliography. The dictionary section has over 600 cross-referenced entries on important amateur and professional wrestling, wrestling personalities, announcers, managers and promoters from all eras, and wrestling organizations. This book is an excellent access point for students, researchers, and anyone wanting to know more about the sport of Wrestling.
An opening chronology covers 708 BCE (wrestling added to the Olympics) to 2013 (wrestling dropped from, then reinstated to the Olympics; Wrestlemania 29). The introduction goes into more detail, alternating between sport and sports entertainment (e.g., "20th-Century Amateur Wrestling--1920-1948"; "20th-Century Professional Wrestling--Post-World War II"). . . .Dictionary entries range from a few lines to two pages and include people (e.g., Gorgeous George; Vincent K. McMahon; Dan Gable), organizations (e.g., World Wrestling Entertainment; Amateur Athletic Union), terms (e.g., lucha libre; kayfabe; featherweight). Entries give basic biographical information, titles held, postretirement activities, and occasional odd asides. . . .[R]esearchers in need of a reputable source to cite for basic data have it here. Cross-references and see/see also references are provided. The many appendixes include lists of champions for amateur wrestling, and real and ring names for professional wrestling. The bibliography may be useful for researchers. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-level undergraduates and general readers.