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The History Of The Game, And Its Development In The UK - Part 1 - The International Origins

This article has been written exclusively for the Playing Bingo to give an overview of the long and distinguished history of our favourite game.

Author: Dio

The Early Origins Of The Game Of Bingo

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Bingo is a game that has been around for centuries in various forms. Through its history, several changes to the form of the game, as well as growing popularity in different areas have occurred. Bingo is a game of chance, which you win without a strategy. No doubt its very simplicity is part of what has led to its popularity, and made it a great way to spend free time and socialise.

Its thought Bingo began as the lotto, called Lo Giuoco del Lotto D'Italia in Italy. It was known to grow in popularity in this region from the 1530s. This particular lotto was known to be played every Saturday in this region. This lotto would have several cards laid out in nine columns and three rows. These would then be randomly chosen by the participants. As the cards were drawn they would be placed on a random row. From here, chips would be put into a bag, and then drawn at random. As soon as someone's card had all of the numbers from the chips that were drawn, they had won the lotto.

After the growing popularity in Italy, the idea of the lotto began to move towards France. It became popular in this region by the 1770s. This version was slightly different because of the culture, but held the same major ideas. It also was esteemed by a different group of people, as it was mostly played with the wealthy Frenchmen. During this era, Bingo began to travel to several other areas throughout Europe, all taking on slightly different forms. For example, when it moved to Germany, it was used to teach children about different history, math and spelling subjects.

It wasn't until 1929 that Bingo arrived in the United States. It was adapted in this region under the name of Beano. The United States used the form of Bingo at fairs and carnivals in order to attract different people. Instead of chips, beans were used to place on the cards that were being used. The name Bingo first became popular with someone who was playing the game. She had won and became too excited. She shouted out the wrong name, saying Bingo instead of Beano. This was heard by one who was part of a toy marketing company. He then went to develop Bingo in the form that it is mostly seen by today.

Continue to Part 2: The Golden Age And The Bingo Explosion >>

The History Of The Game, And Its Development In The UK - Part 1 - The International Origins

The Early Origins Of The Game Of Bingo

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