The Origin of Backgammon

Of all known games in the world, backgammon is said to be the oldest in recorded history. Its source is traced from a version of this board game that was first played about 5,000 years ago in Mesopotamia. The game was typically played on wood surfaces, using stones as markers, and dice made from bones, stones, wood or pottery.

The game we know today was refined in England in the seventeenth century, which is also when it obtained the name "Backgammon". The Saxons called it the "bac" (back) "gamen" (game), since the markers go "back" when hit and have to re-enter the "game".

The backgammon board symbolizes a year; each side contains 12 points for months of the year; the twenty-four points stand for the hours in a day; the 30 markers represent days of the month; the sum of opposing sides of the die represent the 7 days of the week; the contrasting colors of each set of markers signify day and night.

The British writer on games, Edmond Hoyle, codified the rules of backgammon in 1745 and for almost two centuries his strategy remained standard. These rules were modified in 1931 in the United States, most likely with the introduction of the doubling cube around 1925 by some unknown gambler. This modification in backgammon rules improved the element of skill in the game increasing its marketability.

During the late 1960's and early 1970's there was a widespread surge in the popularity of the game. Backgammon popularity increased again in the 1990's with the attractiveness of the Internet and backgammon sites. Today, you can play backgammon online with people from all over the world, any time of the day or night, from the comfort of your home. You can play backgammon for fun, for free or for money on a number of commercially available backgammon servers.

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