![]() ![]() The 36 Circle tiles are in four identical sets of 9 tiles with one to nine circles engraved on them. Mahjong game Mahjong set of tilesĪ standard set has the following tiles: Circles Mah-Jongg, became a great craze as a parlor game in the 1920s when the US company Abercrombie & Fitch ➚ had great success in popularizing it there were a number of trade marked versions of the game including ‘Pung Chow’ and ‘Game of Thousand Intelligences’. It was originally known as 麻雀 Má què or ‘sparrow game’ in English and is still known by that name in southern China while in the north it is 麻 将 Má jiàng. ![]() The names normally used for the tiles suggest that the export to America came from the Guangdong (Canton) area. Some people have said it goes back all the way to the time of Confucius but there is no evidence for this. On the other hand the mystique of an ancient game from the mysterious and exotic East was a major selling point, so it is possible it was invented more recently. The oldest known sets come from about 1870 in the Ningbo region of Zhejiang, perhaps by Chen Yumen ➚ 陈 鱼 门 Chén Yúmén (1817-1878). In a search for evidence of an early use of the game, no definitive evidence pushes it back before the Taiping Rebellion but pastimes are rarely mentioned in old history books particularly when played by ordinary people rather than the scholarly elite. The tiles were originally made of bone, bamboo or ivory but now are made from plastic. Like Chinese chess, Mahjong is often played in tea-houses and the clattering of tiles on tables is a frequently heard. Mahjong is a game combining skill and chance vaguely similar to the card game of rummy ➚ the aim is to collect related groups of tiles, however the set of tiles and rules are a lot more complex than for cards. The absence of a 'queen' piece and the strange rules for 'cannons' make this a more challenging game than the version played in the West. There are strong reasons to suppose that the Chinese game 象 棋 Xiangqi or 'elephant game' is closer to the original form. Image by Joe Mabel ➚ available under a Creative Commons License ➚ Chinese ChessThe Chinese game of chess is rather different to the version used in the west. ![]() Playing mahjong at Seattle's Chinatown-International District Night Market, Hing Hay Park, International District, Seattle, Washington. ![]() The game of mahjong (or mah-jongg) is another famous Chinese invention and export to the rest of the world. There is a total of 12 arrow, or dragon, tiles in each mahjong set.Modern history People's Republic of China Future Leaders Government Space Exploration Economy Long March Republic of China May 4th Movement Pastimes | Mahjong Chinese Mahjong The white board means freedom from corruption, a miss in archery, or the Confucian virtue of filial piety. The last character features a blue 白 ( bái, white), which represents 白板 ( bái ban, white board). This saying translates to "get rich," but it also represents an archer releasing his or her draw and the Confucian virtue of sincerity. This character is a part of the saying, 發財 ( fā cái). The Chinese character represents 紅中 ( hóng zhōng), which connotes passing the imperial exam, a hit in archery, and the Confucian virtue of benevolence.Īnother tile features a green 發 ( fā, wealth). One tile features a red 中 ( zhōng, center). This threesome has several meanings which are derived from the ancient imperial exam, archery, and Confucius’ cardinal virtues. There are four sets of arrows tiles, and each set has three tiles. The other honor suit is called arrows, or dragons. The total number of wind tiles in each game set is 16. There are four sets, and each set has four tiles. Like the characters simple suit, it is necessary to learn to read the cardinal direction characters in Chinese to recognize and organize this suit. These tiles each feature the character for compass directions: north (北, běi), east (東, dōng), south (南, nán), and west (西, xī). The winds (the first four tiles on the left) are one of six tile sets in a Mahjong game. ![]()
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