The History of Gambling

While anti-gambling activists tout gambling as an illness of modern day society, the history of gambling actually dates back to prehistoric times, and developed independently around the world.

The earliest form of gambling that archaeologist have discovered is dice games. These games began as bone rolling, and were discovered in the Americas, Africa, Alaska and the Mediterranean. Dice were used by the ancient Egyptians and Greeks as a method for reading the future, and quickly evolved into games of chance.

The six sided dice of today came from a Buddhist game called “promotion.” This game started in Korea, and the six sided dice soon spread across the world. There are reports written by leaders of the Crusades that they actually had to outlaw dice games because soldiers were betting away their possessions while trying to conquer the Holy Land.

The earliest playing cards developed in 11th century Chinese Turkestan. The cards followed trading routes and arrived in the Middle East during the 13th century and from there went quickly into Europe. The French redesigned the cards with the number system and royal cards that we know today. It wasn't until the deck moved to the United States that it received the double headed face cards, round corners, decorated backs and the Joker cards.

Taking credit for many of today’s favorite casino games, the French invented Roulette, Blackjack and others. Blackjack began in 18th century France, and was called “Vingt et Un,” French for, “Twenty and One.” The name blackjack comes from Vingt et Un's winning hand, the Jack and Ace of Spades, that paid off 10:1.

Though many people claim that gambling is a symptom of societal illness, game playing is considered by historians to be a sign of societal affluence.