Backgammon - An Historical Overview

Backgammon is an ancient game dating back thousands of years. In fact it is the oldest known game in the history of mankind and research has shown that the origins of the game go back to ancient Mesopotamia. Backgammon was also known to be a game played primarily by royalty and nobility. Archaeologists have discovered several artefacts that indicate the popularity of the game amongst the aristocrats in Rome, Greece, Persia and the Far East.

Backgammon was originally played using a wooden board, stones or small rocks as checkers and numbered dice made from a wide range of ancient materials. It was only in the 1st century AD that Romans introduced backgammon to the British Isles. Historians believe that the 'Backgammon' derived its name from the two English words - 'Bac gamen' meaning 'Back Game'. This most likely referred to the re-entry of checkers or men from the bar or the more advanced Backgammon strategy of playing backgammon known as the 'Back Game'.

The first person to set a standard for the game complete with rules and instructions as well as a published guide was an Englishman named Edmond Hoyle. Not only did this move lead to the widespread popularity of the game across the European continent, but also allowed the birth of several variations of the game. The most common examples of this would be 'Tric-Trac' in France and“Puff” in Germany which even today follow the same Backgammon rules.

However, backgammon having lost some of its lustre as a game of entertainment in the years intervening, it experienced a massive comeback in the digital age. The popularity of the game rose exponentially with the introduction of online gaming and the profile of the game was raised by the launch of several online backgammon servers in 2005.

Amazing game play, free backgammon schools, tournaments with major prize money and the chance to play with thousands of players online are just a few of the reasons why more than 1,000,000 people have joined an online backgammon community since then.

Today, there are many variations to the game of Backgammon and also play backgammon tournaments. They use the same board and number of checkers such as: 'Kotra', 'Tabard', 'Sixy-Acey', 'Acey-Deucey', the Greek 'Plakot', the Arabic 'Jioul' and the multi-player 'Chouette'.