The Exciting History of Backgammon

The name " Backgammon" comes from the Saxons' words "bac", meaning back, and gamen, meaning game. There's more to Backgammon than the simple board. It has a very long history, and worth reading about.

The earliest roots of this game were found in Ur, a part of Mesopotamia. Archaeologists found a 5000-old inlaid gaming board and found it was associated with the game we know now. Another version was found in Persia, and is believed to be 1600 years old. It was called "Takhteh Nard" or "Battle on Wood". This game reached into Europe through the Arabs.

Time passed and this game had also reached different parts of the world. Countries have named this game after its features. Obviously, these names will give us an idea on how Backgammon looked or was played. In Egypt, it was called Senet, or the game of thirty squares. In Rome, Backgammon was Ludus Duodecim Scriptorium, meaning game of twelve lines. Italy called it Tavola Reale, and Spain named it Tablas Reales, both meaning royal tables. In the east, it was T'shu-p'u, in China, and Sugoroko in Japan; both games are played on circular tables. In Germany and France, Puff and Le Tritac respectively, were the names, because of the sound the dice made.

In some part of its history, Backgammon was considered to be the game for the elite, because of the huge amounts placed as bets. This, however, became less the case, later on. This game was also rejected by powerful countries, probably because the leaders were not good at it! The game regained its popularity during the 60's and 70's, and was even called The Cruelest of Games. The rules were standardized in 1745, and the compilation of regulations was called "A Short Treatise on the Game of Backgammon". It was really long, and it was quite detailed. Once one got to read and understand it, the game became easier. It was revised in 1935, because of the development of the doubling cube, whose creator still remains unknown. Nowadays, with the development of computers, and the wonders of Internet, anyone can play with almost anyone, all over the world, at the touch of your fingertips. You can play with real or pretend money. The best thing is, you can establish relationships with people you meet online.

The game Backgammon is as exciting as its history. Now that you know a little about how it originated, I hope you can create your own version, or encourage more people to play with you. It is a risk game, with a good, long history.