Language, Music & Games
Playing cards (Ganjifa / painted-rag suits)
suits game ancient; Ganjifa by 16th c.Indian card traditionReferences to kridapatram; Mughal GanjifaPan-Indian / unspecified
1501
Early suit-based card games, including the circular painted Ganjifa cards.
- Dated
- 1501–1600
- As scholars put it
- suits game ancient; Ganjifa by 16th c.
- Originator
- Indian card tradition
- Source text
- References to kridapatram; Mughal Ganjifa
- Region
- Pan-Indian / unspecified
- Discipline
- Language, Music & Games
- Evidence
- Documented
- Confidence
- Medium
- Verification
- Verified-web
Meanwhile in the West
Card games spread worldwide with many national variants.
Fair to say
The ultimate origin of playing cards is contested; paper cards are first firmly recorded in East Asia (9th c.).
Path to modern innovation
Card games are a global pastime.
Transmission
Part of a wider Eurasian spread of card games.
References
- 1Wikipedia: List of Indian inventions
- 2histories of playing cards
Further reading
Corrections and additional sources: edit IND-112 on GitHub.