While the exact origins of the game of Poker are unclear, it is thought to have evolved over centuries from various games of bluffing or domino cards. Some believe it was first invented before 969 A.D. by the Chinese, as the Emperor Mu-tsung is reported to have played with his wife on New Years Eve of that year. Egyptians played cards in the 12th and 13th centuries, while the Persians played a game known as As Nas in the 16th century. This game consisted of 25 cards with 5 different suits with rounds of betting and hierarchies of card status, with the contemporary three-of-a-kind being exhibited at this stage. It is thought that As Nas was taught to French settlers in New Orleans by Persian sailors.
Bluffing and deceiving became an integral part of the game in the 17th and 18th centuries in the French (‘Poque’) and German (‘Pochen’ which means ‘to knock’) games, which had both derived from the Spanish game called ‘Primero’, which is now referred to a ‘poker’s mother’, and involved each player being dealt three cards.
French colonials brought the game to the new world when they arrived in Canada and it eventually spread all over America, which is where it truly flourished. As tolerance to gambling lessened, many towns had kicked out known gamblers and passed orders against gambling which left gamblers with no choice but to take to the riverboats on the Mississippi. One of the earliest written references to the poker being played on the riverboats named it the ‘cheating game’, which quickly overtook the 3 card monte game in terms of popularity. The ‘cheating game’ was seen as a more honest (!) and challenging gamble, as the 3 card game was infamous for being fixed. As its popularity grew the 20 card pack was exchanged for the 52 card pack we have today.
During the 1800s, a Poker table would be found in every saloon across the United States. The American Civil War brought about many changes to the game which include draw poker, stud poker and the straight, with the joker being introduced as a wild card in 1875. Low ball and split-pot poker emerged in the 1900s and community card games began in 1925. The US Military have hugely influenced the spread of poker to other countries, chiefly Asia.
Poker is now extremely popular with both participation and viewing of the game agen poker and Raja365 at an all time high. The World Series of Poker and the World Poker Tour are broadcast to American television audiences, with the addition of specially run poker events which are filmed for prime time viewing. For a game that was once only played by cheats and outlaws it has turned full circle with Poker having a ‘sport’ status, and is played by professional celebrity masterminds of the game. Now is obviously the time to get involved in playing poker + playing and learning from millions of other enthusiasts from around the world has never been so easy as with the advent of online poker.
