Mah-jong is a jeu de société d’origine chinoise qui fascine depuis des générations. Mais d’où vient-il exactement ? Quelle est la date de création du Mah-jong ? Découvrons ensemble les racines de ce jeu fascinant et son évolution à travers les siècles.
When was Mah-jong created?
Contrairement à d’autres jeux dont l’origine est bien documentée, il n’y a no exact date about the creation of Mah-jong.
Cependant, la plupart des historiens et des experts du jeu s’accordent pour situer l’appearance of Mah-jong between 1850 and 1870 in China. It should be noted that this period corresponds to the end of the Qing dynasty, a time of significant social and cultural change.
Ce qui est certain, c’est que le Mah-jong a connu un véritable essor au début du XXe siècle, se propageant rapidement dans toute la Chine et au-delà de ses frontières. Ce jeu de société chinois est arrived in the United States in the 1920s grâce à Joseph P. Babcock, un homme d’affaires américain.
L’évolution du Mah-jong à travers le temps
Although the precise origins of Mah-jongg remain unclear, we do know more about its origins. evolution from the late 19th century onwards.
As mentioned earlier, Joseph P. Babcock played a crucial role in this popularization by publishing simplified rules and marketing Mah-jong sets adapted to the Western market.
Cette période marque l’âge d’or du Mah-jong en Occident, avec des tournois, des clubs et une présence médiatique importante. Au fur et à mesure de sa diffusion à travers le monde, le Mah-jong s’est adapté aux cultures locales, donnant gave rise to numerous regional variants.
Mahjong styles and variations
The diversity of mahjong variants bears witness to its cultural richness and its capacité d’adaptation. Here's an overview of some of the best-known :
| 🀄Style | ⭐Popularity | 🕹️Type (Physical or Digital) | ✅Particularity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Classic Chinese Mahjong | China (origin) | Physical | Traditional rules, played with 144 tiles, no flowers or seasons. |
| Hong Kong Mahjong | Hong Kong and Southeast Asia | Physical | Simplified version with flowers, seasons and standardized scoring rules. |
| Japanese Mah-jong (Riichi) | Japan | Physics and Numerics | Adding the system Riichi (hand declaration) and dora (bonus). |
| American Mah-jong | UNITED STATES | Physical | Game with special scorecards and Joker tiles, very popular with clubs. |
| Taiwanese Mah-jong | Taiwan | Physical | You play with 16 tiles in hand, complex combinations and longer styles. |
| Korean mah-jong | South Korea | Physical | Reduction to 104 tiles, excluding bamboo tiles from 2 to 8. |
| Modern Mah-jong (Competitive) | International | Physics and Numerics | Standardized rules for competitions by the World Mahjong Organization. |
| Singapore Mah-jong | Singapore | Physical | Similar to Hong Kong, includes unique combinations for scoring. |
| Mah-jong Solitaire | International | Digital | Version populaire sur ordinateur, consiste à associer des paires pour vider l’écran. |
| Online Mahjong | International | Digital | Play online, solo or against other players, on platforms such as Free Mahjong or Mahjong Soul. |
| Mah-jong Mobile | International | Digital | Smartphone versions, often with single-player or multiplayer modes. |
Even if we we don't know when Mah-jongg was created.Generally speaking, it first appeared between 1850 and 1870 in China, under the Qing dynasty. Its introduction to the West in the 1920s, thanks to Joseph P. Babcock, marked a major turning point in its history.
By becoming a global phenomenon, the Mah-jong s’est diversifié en de nombreuses variantes each with its own specific characteristics. From tea rooms to digital platforms, Mahjong continues to fascinate and unite players around the world.
Tout comme le Mah-jong, sachez qu’il existe different Solitaire variants to discover.
English