MahJongg: The History

Mahjong Game Pack  Learn to Play Mahjong  Download Mahjong Game  Mahjong Symbolism

It was not before the turn of this century until the West got a glimpse of Mah Jongg, when it was introduced in the international colony of Shanghai and from then onwards in the USA, Japan and finally Europe. When it was introduced in the West, it was claimed that it's origins were shrouded in the mists of time, but most evidence seems to point to the game being developed in the late 1800's in the Ningpo area of China.

The original mahjongg game is a board game for four players somewhat similar to the card game "Gin Rummy", but played with tiles instead of cards. There are at least 26 known varieties of mahjongg; with the six major varieties being: Chinese, Taiwanese, Japanese, American, Western and Filipino. Different mahjong games use pretty similar basic rules, but different scoring and different strategies, special hands and tile combinations.

Although the game MahJongg as it is generally played today can only be traced back to the end of the last century, the line of games that evolved to MahJongg is long and extensive. From around 800 AD card games were played which resembled the way MahJongg is played. The cards used in these games resembled the money used in those days.

Recently a growing number of people are realizing the intellectual challenge Mah Jongg poses and the beauty and excitement of the game itself. Thus, a numerous clubs of mahjongg fans have evolved and a whole philosophic system of MahJongg symbolism is now shaped up. Now, Mah Jong is also often called a solitaire game due to their similarity.

Learn more about hidden symbolism of MahJong!

Mahjong Game Pack  Learn to Play Mahjong  Download Mahjong Game  Mahjong Symbolism