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Mahjong (麻將) is a game for four players that originated in China. It was called (麻雀), meaning sparrow in ancient China. It is still the name most commonly used in some southern Chinese dialects such as Cantonese and Minnan, as well as in Japanese. However, most Chinese now call the game má jiàng (麻將).
Mahjong involves skill, strategy, and calculation, as well as a certain degree of luck (depending on the variation played, luck can be anything from a minor to a dominant factor in winning). In Asia, mahjong is also popularly played as a gambling game. In the game, each player is dealt either thirteen or sixteen tiles in a hand, depending on the variation being played. On their turn, players draw a tile and discard one, with the goal of making four or five melds (also depending on the variation) and one pair, or "head". Winning comes "on the draw" by drawing a new or discarded tile that completes the hand. Thus, a winning hand actually contains fourteen (or seventeen) tiles.
History
Mahjong in China
One of the myths of the origin of mahjong suggests that Confucius,the great Chinese philosopher, developed the game in about 500 BC. This assertion is likely to be apocryphal. According to this myth, the appearance of the game in the various Chinese states coincided with Confucius' travels at the time he was teaching his new doctrines. The three dragon (cardinal) tiles also agree with the three cardinal virtues bequeathed by Confucius. Hóng Zhōng (紅中 , red middle), Fā Cái (發財 , prosperity), and Bái Pí (白皮 , white skin) represent benevolence, sincerity, and filial piety, respectively.
The myth also claims that Confucius was fond of birds, which would explain the name "mahjong" (maque 麻雀 = sparrow). However, there is no evidence of mahjong's existence before the Taiping era in the 19th century, which eliminates Confucius as a likely inventor.
Many historians believe it was based on a Chinese card game called Mǎdiào (馬弔) (also known as Ma Tiae, hanging horse; or Yèzí [葉子], leaf) in the early Ming dynasty. This game was played with 40 paper cards similar in appearance to the cards used in the game Ya Pei. These 40 cards are numbered 1 to 9 in four different suits, along with four extra flower cards. This is quite similar to the numbering of mahjong tiles today, although mahjong only has three suits and, in effect, uses four packs of Ya Pei cards.
There is still some debate about who created the game. One theory is that Chinese army officers serving during the Taiping Rebellion created the game to pass the time. Another theory is that a nobleman living in the Shanghai area created the game between 1870 and 1875. Others believe that two brothers from Níngpō created mahjong around 1850, from the earlier game of Mǎdiào.
This game was banned by the government of People's Republic of China when the country was founded in 1949. The new Communist government forbade any gambling activities, which were regarded as symbols of capitalist corruption. After the Cultural Revolution, the game was revived, dissociated with gambling elements (see below). Today, it is a favorite pastime in China and other Chinese-speaking communities.
Mahjong in the Western world
Students in the United States learning how to play mahjongIn 1895, Stewart Culin, an American anthropologist, wrote a paper in which mahjong was mentioned. This is the first known written account of mahjong in any language other than Chinese. By 1910, there were written accounts in many languages, including French and Japanese. In 1920, Abercrombie & Fitch became the first-ever American brand to introduce the game.[3] It became a success in New York, and the owner of the company, Ezra Fitch, sent emissaries to Chinese villages to buy every set of mahjong they could find. Abercrombie & Fitch sold a total of 12,000 sets. Later, an important English book was written by Joseph Park Babcock, called Rules of Mah-Jongg. The book was simplified in 1920 and was simply known as the "red book". Although this was the earliest version of mahjong that was introduced to America, many of Babcock's simplifications were abandoned when the 1920s fad died out.
The game was a sensation in America when it was imported from China in the 1920s, and it took on a number of trademarked names, such as "Pung Chow" and the "Game of Thousand Intelligences". Mahjong nights in America often involved dressing and decorating rooms in Chinese style. Several hit songs were also recorded during the mahjong fad, most notably "Since Ma is Playing Mah Jong" by Eddie Cantor.
American mahjong, which was mainly played by Jewish women[citation needed] during the 1920s in America, grew from this craze. By the 1930s, many revisions of the rules developed that were substantially different from Babcock's classical version (including some that were considered fundamentals in other variants, such as the notion of a standard hand). Standardization came with the formation of the National Mah Jongg League (NMJL) in 1937, along with the first American mahjong rulebook, Maajh: The American Version of the Ancient Chinese Game.
While mahjong was accepted by U.S. players of all ethnic backgrounds during the Babcock era, many consider the modern American version a Jewish game, as many American mahjong players are of Jewish descent. The NMJL was founded by Jewish players and is considered a Jewish organization. In addition, players usually use the American game as a family-friendly social activity, not as gambling.
In recent years, a second organization has formed, called The American Mah Jongg Association. They currently host tournaments all across North America, with their signature event being at the Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
British author Alan D. Millington revived the Chinese classical game of the 1920s with his book The Complete Book of Mah-jongg (1977). This handbook includes a formal rules set for the game. Many players in Western countries consider Millington's work authoritative.
Mahjong is not the first re-appearance of the Chinese game in the western world. It was also introduced by W. H. Wilkinson of H.B.M. Consular Service, and published in card form by Messrs. Goodall of London, prior to 1895, under the name of Khanhoo. This card game does not seem to have made any impression, the success of Mahjong resting in no small part upon the elegance of its mechanism as embodied in the domino-like pieces.
Current development
Today, the popularity and the characteristics of players of mahjong vary from country to country. There are also many governing bodies, which often host exhibition games and tournaments. It remains far more popular in Asia than in the West.
In Japan, there is a traditional emphasis on gambling[dubious – discuss], and the typical player is male. Many devotees there believe the game is losing popularity and have taken efforts to revive it.[citation needed] There are several manga devoted to dramatic stories as well as comic situations involving mahjong. In addition, Japanese video arcades have introduced mahjong arcade machines that can be connected to others over the Internet. Additional incentives for video game players in Japan come in the form of beautiful and scantily clad young female opponents (mostly cartoon, but sometimes videotaped models) playing a form of strip mahjong by removing clothing items when they lose a hand.
Mahjong culture is still deeply ingrained in the Chinese community. Sam Hui wrote Cantopop songs using mahjong as their themes, and Hong Kong movies have often included scenes of mahjong games. Gambling movies have been filmed time and again in Hong Kong, and a recent sub-genre is the mahjong movie.
A recent study by doctors in Hong Kong concluded that extensive playing of the game can induce epileptic seizures.
Studies by doctors have also shown in Hong Kong that the game is beneficial for individuals suffering from dementia or cognitive memory difficulties, leading to the development of mahjong therapy. |
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