The History of Dominoes

Dominoes are a popular item that originated in China in the 1300s. They allow for a variety of games while testing skill and patience. The markings on dominoes are called pips – these originally represented the results of throwing two six-sided dice. However, in America today, we typically use European dominos, which differ from the Chinese versions because the European sets incorporate seven extra dominos – six that represent the results from throwing a single six-sided die with the other half of the tile blank, and one representing the blank-blank (or 0-0) combination. There are many games that can be played using dominoes, such as bergen, muggins, matador, and chicken foot. The popular activity of lining up dominos and then giving one a push is known as “toppling” – while we don’t know exactly when this practice began, it’s safe to assume that it dates back to the tiles’ early years. Today, dominos remain a popular way to pass the time that offers versatile gameplay and plenty of fun!