The History of Gambling in China
Because China has an ongoing tradition of enjoying a wager, the history of Chinese gambling is really a work in progress. While no legal gambling takes place on the China mainland, bettors have wagered on legalized horse racing in Hong Kong since 1884 and Macao's legal casinos, which have been drawing Chinese punters since 1962, are surging in a 21st century expansion.
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Early History
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It is thought that one of the oldest Chinese gambling games, "wei-qi," dating to around 3000 B.C., originated as a tool of astrological divination. Players used a square board with a grid of 19 lines and stone playing pieces. Other early gambling games were baccarat ("baak ga lok" in Cantonese); Chinese dominoes, which date to about 700 B.C.; and playing cards, which were in evidence around 1200 A.D. However, exactly where and when these forms of gaming originated is undocumented.
Shanghai
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During the mid-1800s through the early 1900s, the International Settlement in Shanghai, China, was said to offer roulette and other forms of casino-style gaming to patrons while the city's famous French Concession had gambling on jai alai games.
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Mahjong
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Considered a national pastime, mahjong is probably the most popular Chinese gambling game. It is traditionally a four-person table game, played at home, using tiles with printed symbols, including numerals, circles, dragons, winds and flowers. When the Chinese celebrate special occasions like birthdays, weddings and anniversaries, customarily in restaurants, the mahjong games precede dinner. Today, plastic or bone mahjong tiles are the standard, replacing ivory. The clattering of tiles is the happiest sound dedicated mahjong players can hear.
Festival Wagers
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During festivals like the Chinese New Year, "Yue Har Hai" is a popular gambling game for the whole family. Translated literally, it means "Fish Shrimp Crab," denoting some of the symbols on the game board. Players put their betting chips on one or more of the board symbols, and a roll of the dice decides the winner(s) based on the symbols that come heads up.
Hong Kong
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In the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, a British colony until 1997, legalized betting on horse racing and football matches and through lotteries is enormously popular and hugely profitable, yielding an annual turnover of about HK$111,000 million in 2008. The Hong Kong Jockey Club runs twice-weekly horse racing at the Shatin and Happy Valley tracks, with surplus funds earmarked for local charities and community projects.
Macao
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The former Portuguese enclave of Macao, returned to Chinese sovereignty in 1999 but still governed as a semi-autonomous entity, is the only Chinese territory where casino gambling is legal. Macao lifted a previous gaming monopoly in 2002, opening up the city to outsiders. In 2004, the first American-owned casino and hotel complex, the $240 million Las Vegas Sands Casino Macao, opened its doors. By 2006, Macao had edged past Las Vegas in total gambling revenue with almost $7 billion.
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