History of Poker

The history of poker is believed to have evolved around ten centuries ago. Like other card games, poker involves the basic principals of ranked card with the application of "bluffing techniques" to deceive opponents.

The evolution of the game was thought to have been invented sometime before 969 A.D. by the Chinese. It was reported that it started when the Emperor Mu-tsung played "domino cards" with his wife on one new years eve.

In the 12th and 13th centuries, the Egyptians were also known to have used a form of what they call their playing cards. Different games with different mechanics similar to the domino cards played by the Chinese were invented, which might have also led to the invention of what we call poker today.

In 16th century, Persia "Ganjifa" or "Treasure Cards" were used for a variety of betting games. A Ganjifa deck consisted of 96 elaborate cards. They were made of very thin slices of ivory or precious wood. The Persians tehn played the game of "As Nas" which used 25 cards and it involved rounds of betting and the basic principals of card ranking.

In the 17th and 18th centuries, a French game called "Poque" and a German game named "Pochen" became very popular. They actually originated from the Spanish game called "Primero" which was invented in the 16th century. The game involved three cards being dealt to each player. Betting high stakes and bluffing when holding poor ranking cards to deceive opponents was the primary mechanics of the game. Primero was eventually referred to as "poker's mother" as it is the first version that has been confirmed to have the same mechanics of what we recognize as poker today.