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A History of Blackjack
Ask anyone on the street and they will have no idea where Blackjack comes from. Even many of the professional players will have no idea about the roots of blackjack and if they do, it will be all muddled up and not clear.
Modern Blackjack Origins
It is often said that to truly understand and appreciate a game or activity, no matter what it is, you need to know a little bit of the background surrounding it. Blackjack is a widely accepted casino card game played all over the world in land based and online casinos. How many players really know something about the game? Card games have been around for centuries and evolved over the years into different versions and adaptations of original card games or ticket games from as far back as the Egyptians and Romans. Blackjack is no exception although its more modern roots lie with the French.
Vingt et Un
Around the 17th Century a popular game called Vingt et Un was the hit in the French gaming houses. This was a development of another well known game called "chemin de fer". The goal when playing Vingt et Un was to reach a natural 21 with the 2 cards dealt, the difference with modern day Blackjack is that there was betting after each round when the cards were dealt. Only the dealer could double down as it is known today and if the dealer was dealt a natural 21, the other players had to pay him 3 x the value of their placed bets.
Why is Blackjack called Blackjack?
As with any good game it did not stay localized and soon traveled across the Atlantic to America, by the 1800's Vingt et Un was also a popular card game in the casinos and saloons of America. Around this time the game developed other variations and adopted the name of Blackjack. The Blackjack name derived from a winning hand of an Ace of Spades and a Jack of Spades which paid out odds of 10:1. This was introduced as a bonus to the game to try and entice more players. The name remained over the years but the bonus was soon dropped by casinos.
You Can Now Play Blackjack Online
Blackjack can also attribute some of its characteristics to other European games which involve reaching a certain number with two or three cards. Pontoon from England, Thirty - one from Spain and Ochko from Russia. Each of these different versions adds to the variety and widespread acceptance of a game that has such a simple concept. There were many years when Blackjack was not the most popular of the card games as it only paid out 3:2 but since the craze of online casinos has taken over, Blackjack has once again become one of the most played card games today. There are tournaments that encourage and support new players and old professional players, a Hall of Fame for the best known players and hundreds of books written giving advice on what strategy to use. Thanks to modern computer technology, you can now play blackjack online or even on your cell phone. Not bad for a humble game that started all those years ago with the French or even before.
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