Fan

Hi! I`ve been looking for any shops, that are selling "fans". I only found on Yutopian fans with signs of famous players (but only 3 of them). Does anyone know, where can I buy a fan (the best would be internet shop)? The best would be, when You can choose what do YOu want to have written on it (like "go" in kanji, or Your name).

Please help me! Ruca

Rafael Caetano: Nihon Kiin sells them, but I don't know if they ship abroad. There are top pros' fans (ask if you need help translating the names) and others.

(I've seen that various pros (and characters in Hikaru no Go) have fans with them as they play. What's the signficance of this?) - RiiNamuras

Hylebos: I second this question.

HermanHiddema: Presumably the significance of this is that sometimes these people get hot and feel the need to cool themselves off by fanning themselves.

Bob McGuigan: The use of fans like this in Japanese culture goes way back, possibly for the reasons Herman gives. They serve many purposes in professional go and are used in all(?) the Asian go cultures. Usually they have mottoes written on them, perhaps with encouragement for the player or a souvenir of an admired master. Fiddling with them serves as a way to let off nervous tension. There is a nice article about them by John Fairbairn on the lamentably inactive MindZine site. You can buy them from the Nihon Ki-in with calligraphy by famous Japanese players. I think they have blank ones, which go fans ;) in Japan often use to collect autographs of pro players. Rakuten, which sells these for the Nihon Ki-in (see Rafael's link above), will ship overseas. Most of the fans are around JPY1600 or JPY1700 plus shipping.

heather: I've seen old photos of famous players using fans. One thing in particular that I thought might be worth mentioning was the use of fans in the software Go program TensaiGo. Both the digital representations of the player and the computer have fans; what they are doing with the fans depends on who's winning and who's losing. Incidentally, FWIW, the use of blank fans to collect autographs reminds me of the Mexican fans of Duranguense music who buy blank, unstained straw hats to collect their favourite bands' signatures on.