Playing cards are still very popular. The first thing that comes to mind when mentioning card games is usually parlor games, i.e. keeping someone company, enjoying exciting games together and in this way treating yourself to the fun factor.

You’re probably interested in where playing cards come from, why they’re so popular, or why there are 52 cards in a deck, for example. Who actually invented playing cards? We are here with our guide to answer all these questions about playing cards. Here we go with the history of playing cards!

Where are the playing cards from?

There are many theories when explaining facts about card games. There is evidence that the first playing cards originally came from China. They were invented there in the 12th century and because of the illustrations it was assumed that games of chance were played at that time.
The playing cards were subsequently discovered in India, Persia, and also in Arab countries. From there they probably spread to Europe, Italy and France in the 14th century. There is no solid evidence of how the game came to Europe. There were speculations that it came to Europe from the Orient by the Arabs, from Egypt or via traveling traders.
The card game has spread and evolved over time. As a result, several card motifs and names of the game have emerged, such as: “Naib” from Arabs or “Naipes” from Spain, formerly also from Italy. Trionfi cards were discovered in Italy, which evolved into the French Tarot. In the meantime, many variants of the Trionfi cards have emerged. The illustrations on the cards of that time have nothing in common with today’s tarot cards.

Playing card symbols and playing card suits also play an important role in the development of the cards. The classic four suits – clubs, spades, hearts, diamonds, known in Europe, originally come from Arabic cards. These old symbols and suits – sword (clubs), club (spades), cup (heart) and coin (diamonds) – were replaced by acorns, hearts, bells and leaves in the German deck, for example.
However, the French division of clubs (Trefle), spades (Pique), hearts (Coeur) and cornerstone (Caro) is the most well-known.
Nowadays there are also innovative playing card designs: e.g. in Japan, in contrast to European playing card symbols and suits, birds and landscapes are depicted on cards.

Why 52 cards in the deck?

You’re probably interested in why there are exactly 52 cards in the deck. You have certainly often asked yourself this or perhaps suspected it and we would be happy to answer this question for you. Anyone who attaches great importance to number symbolism will certainly be happy about the explanation. There are strange facts about playing cards and the history of 52 cards can confirm this fact.
A deck of cards consists of 52 cards because there are 52 weeks in a year. You can already see the power of the symbols. Another thing to consider are playing card symbols, as each of these symbols has 13 cards, which aligns with the 13 lunar cycles. Since it is a fact that the playing cards came to Europe via Arabian countries, it is not strange to mention lunar cycles. The Arabs were very knowledgeable about astronomy.

There are 4 suits of playing cards, which is related to the 4 seasons or 4 weeks in the month. The playing card symbols: spades, clubs, diamonds and hearts represent 4 elements of nature. Namely, spades represent air, clubs represent fire, diamonds represent earth and heart represents water. In the deck of cards there are 12 figures, like 12 months of the year or even 12 zodiac signs.

Famous historical figures on maps

Hand on heart – did you know that the events at the courts were depicted on the map images? Various scenes were then depicted, with the card images imitating the most well-known princes and emperors, such as Julius Caesar, Alexander the Great, Charlemagne, etc. The jacks usually represent the important heroes and the ladies were represented by female figures from the Bible or Greek mythology.
The following famous personalities were decisive for card images:

• King of Diamonds for Julius Caesar
• King of Clubs for Alexander the Great
• King of Hearts for Charlemagne
• King of Spades for David
• Queen of Diamonds: Rachel from the Bible
• Queen of Clubs: Roman goddess Juno
• Queen of Hearts: Judith from the Bible
• Queen of Spades: Greek goddess Pallas Athena
• Jack of Diamonds: Hector of Troy
• Jack of Clubs: Knight Lancelot
• Jack of hearts: Etienne de Vignolles, ally of Joan of Arc
• Jack of Spades: Knight Holger Danske

All figures on the faces of the cards symbolize biblical and medieval famous people. On some maps you can even find characters from the drama “William Tell” by Friedrich Schiller.

The cards are plastic for casino security

The playing cards that were first created were not square, which we all logically assume. They were more like a game of dominoes because they were assembled from ivory tiles. In India they even used round cards. In Europe, playing cards were made by hand and only the upper class could afford to play cards.
In the beginning it was quite expensive to print the playing cards. The solution was subsequently found by using cheaper printing material. This made it possible to produce more decks of cards more cheaply.
Today’s playing cards are commonly made of either multi-layered plastic or paper. The playing cards must not be transparent. The ultimate goal is to prevent players from cheating at the card game.
Related to this are the so-called “marked cards”. This term is used to describe marked cards, i.e. those cards that have certain printing errors, such as: lines, scratches, bent corners, etc. This enables the swindlers to get a head start, or rather, based on the material, they will harder to fool.

Different card games use different playing cards

Card game culture is cultivated in every country. Nowadays you can find a diverse range of card games, such as: Poker, Blackjack, Baccarat, Bridge, Canasta, Skat, Uno, Jass, Bridge, Solitaire, etc.
It doesn’t matter whether you play cards in an online casino, in a land-based casino or with friends in a social group, it’s a lot of fun.
However, what does matter is the type of playing cards, i.e. which cards are used for which deck.
There are different decks of cards used in different card games: French, German, Italian, Spanish, Anglo-American hands and many others. In casinos, for example, the French hand is played. This hand consists of values from 1 (ace) to 10. In addition, the card deck also has the court cards (queen, king and jack).
We have listed the following examples of card games with corresponding card hands for you:

• Baccarat: This casino game uses the French deck, although the cards have no index.
• Poker: This hand is the same as the French hand. The cards have a large index. Poker is usually played without a joker.
• Blackjack: The French hand is also used in the game.
• Bridge: French cards are also used in this card game, but no jokers are used.
• Skat: The deck consists of 32 cards with the values 7, 8, 9, 10, ace, queen, king and 4 jacks.

Why are card games always so popular?

Card games were part of every childhood or were played in adulthood as well. They were often on hand. The most common reasons for this and why cards are still very popular can be found in the following text.
Compared to other types of games, card games are straightforward and easy to understand. The majority of card games are well known everywhere. Even if a card game comes up that you don’t know very well or at all, it doesn’t take long to explain the game and, of course, to enjoy it afterwards. That’s why card games can also be found in online casinos these days. also read our contribution to ”the best online casinos” that we have selected for you.
Regardless of whether you play cards with friends or virtually with strangers, as a professional or a beginner, for real money or for fun, it is a popular and exciting parlor game in which skill and luck play a major role. Discover your favorite card game. We wish you lots of fun playing cards.