The History of Blackjack

Both culturally and lawfully, gambling has had a long, thrilling history. As one of the popular gambling games, theories explaining blackjack origin remains to be a closed book to many. It has taken turns and twists to become popular and the most lovable game today. These developments have made it common in most casinos.

The Origin of Blackjack

Even if it's so hard to tell where blackjack originated from, several theories explain its origin. That's because several similar games to blackjack have always been played in different regions around the globe. "Veintiuna" a Spanish word meaning twenty-one is a game played in Spain without tens like the present-day blackjack. Similar to blackjack, the Spanish 21 has aces equivalent to 1 point or 11 points. It's also similar to the French game "Vingt-et-un" - a French word meaning twenty-one.

Blackjack is also believed to have come from Rome. That's because the Romans are known all over to have been keen gamblers from the word go. That's well evidenced by their love for gambling on gladiator fights and chariot races. However, it's not evident enough that blackjack originated from them even if historians believe that the Romans used wooden blocks with numbers on them to play a game similar to blackjack.

The Game's Development

Blackjack spread to America in the 18th-century through the French colonists and was given a name twenty-one (21). Some changes were also made, including giving an additional betting round between the cards being dealt and making the dealer's second card visible in some cases while starting. The dealer could also decide on how to play his hand before they started following compulsory blackjack rules of hitting up to 16 and standing on 17 or above.

During the 19th century, there was no further spreading of the game due to gambling bans in France. Despite that, the game continued to gain popularity in America, bringing to existence the first legalized and house-banked games in 1820 in New Orleans. Nonetheless, there were also non-legalized player-banked games that were still in existence elsewhere across the country.

As we talk of the history of blackjack, we can't be ignorant of a young French lady Eleanor Dumont. Eleanor was a skilled card dealer who dealt the game to any player with any stake. She played a very key role in the spread of the blackjack game as she moved from place to place playing the game. She also owned a gambling parlor on broad street in Nevada City, California, which earned her popularity and success till the gold rush ended. She was later found dead in Bodie California on 8th September 1879.

In the 20th century, blackjack became more popular in Nevada due to state legalization of gambling in 1931. The payout was increased in some casinos as a way of attracting customers which lasted only for a while, and the title blackjack stuck from this point onward. Blackjack was later converted to internet games. That was as a result of online gambling becoming a mainstream phenomenon with an addition of more variants of blackjack being added to the list every day.