Most people will be surprised to find out that bingo did not originate in the UK. A game that is so intrinsic to British culture has only been popularised in the UK during the 20th century.
Bingo first entered our lives during World War 2.
As a game that does not involve strategy and a lot of conscious effort, bingo alleviates stress, isn’t too challenging, and provides a good past-time for the troops fighting in the war. After the war, people kept on playing as bingo proved to be joyful and highly sociable. Bingo games were organized to raise funds for the community and charities.
Soon everyone became familiar with this classic game as it made its way into the culture of Britain. But bingo has been around in one form or another since the 16th century!
In this article, you will find out who invented bingo and what history surrounds this legendary game.
It All Began in Italy
According to historical records, bingo was a form of lottery in Italy in the 16th century. In fact, it wasn’t even called bingo – “Il Gioco del Lotto d’Italia” was the name that people knew this game by. It was popular amongst all age groups, and the records write both about money games and free games.
Next, the game traveled to France in the late 18th century. Popular amongst the French aristocracy, it was called “Le Lotto.” The game was played in a more sophisticated setup: numbers were carved into wooden tokens and placed in a box. The caller picked the tokens at random from the box and announced the numbers while the players covered them on their tickets.
“Le Lotto” resembled 90 Ball bingo which is the most common form of bingo nowadays: playing numbers were 1 to 90, and the tickets were gridded into three rows and nine columns with 27 squares for numbers. The first player to cover a horizontal line won the game.
The Birth of “Bingo!”
As the game spread around the world and evolved, it became almost identical to the bingo that we play today, except for one difference. The term “Bingo!” did not exist!
So, where did the famous phrase come from? Let’s look further into the history of the game.
In the first half of the 20th century, a game is known as “beano” was making its way through the United States. This game was played exactly like bingo with an additional perk – players used dried beans to cover/mark off the numbers on their tickets. One toy manufacturer from Long Island named Edwin S. Lowe first played “beano” at a carnival in Georgia.
He was impressed by how such a simple game can be so exciting and widely accessible. He started organizing his own games of “beano.” During one of those games, and excited player shouted “bingo!” instead of “beano!”. What she found to be a funny error on her part turned out to be a revelation for Edwin S. Lowe. Bingo had a ring to it, so the inventor patented a game set called “Bingo,” and the rest was history!
We can thank Edwin S. Lowe and one of his friends for the joint responsibility of inventing bingo as we know it. Today, the game has millions of players worldwide, with both land-based games taking place in bingo halls and many online providers offering digital rounds of bingo that you can enjoy on your computer or mobile device. Here’s to many more years of shouting “bingo!”.
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