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Introduction
A card game is any game that uses playing cards as the primary device with which the game is played, whether the cards are of a traditional design or specifically created for the game (proprietary). Countless card games exist, including families of related games (such as poker). A small number of card games played with traditional decks have formally standardized rules with international tournaments being held, but most are folk games whose rules may vary by region, culture, location or from circle to circle.
Traditional card games are played with a deck or pack of playing cards which are identical in size and shape. Each card has two sides, the face and the back. Normally the backs of the cards are indistinguishable. The faces of the cards may all be unique, or there can be duplicates. The composition of a deck is known to each player. In some cases several decks are shuffled together to form a single pack or shoe. Modern card games usually have bespoke decks, often with a vast amount of cards, and can include number or action cards. This type of game is generally regarded as part of the board game hobby. (Full article...)
Selected general articles
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Image 1
Zehnerlegen, Zehneranlegen or Zehner-Auflegen is a card game of the Domino family that is usually played with German-suited cards of the Bavarian pattern, the aim of which is to be first to shed all one's cards. It is thus a shedding-type card game. The name means "laying tens" and refers to the Tens (Zehner) which are the first card in each suit to be played to the table. It is played in Bavaria and in the Austrian state of Burgenland. (Full article...) -
Image 2
Bourré (also commonly known as Bouré and Boo-Ray) is a trick-taking gambling card game primarily played in the Acadiana region of Louisiana in the United States of America. It is also played in the Greek island of Psara, with the name Boureki (Μπουρέκι in Greek). The game's closest relatives are probably Spades and Euchre; like many regional games, Bourré sports many variant rules for both play and betting considerations. (Full article...) -
Image 3Russian Schnapsen, Thousand Schnapsen, 1000 or Tysiacha is a trick-taking game of the ace–ten family for three players, the aim of which is to score over 1000 points to win the game. It is a variant of the popular Austrian game of Schnapsen. Like its parent, Russian Schnapsen features "marriages" (pairs of a King and Ober/Queen of the same suit) which are worth extra points. (Full article...)
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Image 4
Grasobern, Grasoberl, Grasoberln, Graseberla, Grünobern, Lauboberl or Laubobern is a card game that was once commonly played in Old Bavaria, especially in the old counties of Bad Aibling and Rosenheim, and is still popular in eastern Bavaria, especially in Upper Palatinate. The game has relatively simple rules and thus a rather relaxing and leisurely character without the mental demands of Schafkopf or psychological stress of Watten, two other traditional Bavarian card games. The name is taken from the game's penalty card, the Ober of Leaves. The suit of Leaves is known in German variously as Laub ("leaves, foliage"), Gras ("grass") or Grün ("green"). (Full article...) -
Image 5
Sixty-six or 66 (German: Sechsundsechzig), sometimes known as Paderbörnern, is a fast 5- or 6-card point-trick game of the marriage type for 2–4 players, played with 24 cards. It is an ace–ten game where aces are high and tens rank second. It has been described as "one of the best two-handers ever devised".
Closely related games for various numbers of players are popular all over Europe and include Austria's national card game, Schnapsen, the Czech/Slovak Mariáš, Hungarian Ulti, Finnish Marjapussi and French Bezique. American pinochle also descends from this family. Together with the jack–nine family, these form the large king–queen family of games. (Full article...) -
Image 6
Gilten or Giltspiel is a "very old" Austrian card game for four players, playing in partnership, with 32 German-suited cards of the William Tell pattern. Despite its age, it is still played locally in parts of Austria today. It is a trick-taking game which involves betting on the outcome and certain card combinations. (Full article...) -
Image 7
Bruus, formerly Brausebart or Brusbart, is a north German card game for four players in two teams of two. It was once highly popular but has since died out except for a few pockets in the state of Schleswig-Holstein. As Brusbart, it was the ancestor of a family of similar games in northern Europe, including Swedish Bräus and Danish Brus which are still played today. Bruus features 'daring and tormenting' which has been said to give the game a certain charm. Once considered the national game of Hamburg, Bruus is a descendant of Karnöffel, the oldest identifiable European card game in the history of playing cards with a continuous tradition of play down to the present day. The game is named after the Bruus or Brusbart, once its top card, but now its second-highest trump. (Full article...) -
Image 8
Chlust ([xlust], Polish for 'splash') is a Polish gambling card game know primarily in Upper Silesia, hence its alternative name 'Silesian poker', although the game was in existence well before poker was invented. The name is derived from the splashy sound the cards make while being played onto one another, especially when aggressively. (Full article...) -
Image 9
Marjolet (French pronunciation: [maʁʒɔlɛ]) is a French 6-card trick-and-draw game for two players using a 32-card piquet pack. It is of the Queen-Jack type, and thus a relative of Bezique and Pinochle, albeit simpler. The trump Jack is called the Marjolet from which the name of the game derives. (Full article...) -
Image 10
Schnalzen is an Austrian card game for 4 players and a member of the Rams group of games in which the key feature is that players may choose to drop out of the game if they believe their hand is not strong enough to take a minimum number of tricks. It is, broadly speaking, Ramsen with the Weli as the second-highest trump. Players are dealt 5 cards and may not exchange. The Weli is the second-highest trump and game is 20 points. (Full article...) -
Image 11
Matzlfangen ("catching tens") is a traditional point-trick, card game for 4 players that originated in the Bavarian province of Upper Palatinate over 200 years ago and spread to Austria. It is still played in a few places today. The game is named after the ten or Matzl, which plays a key role. (Full article...) -
Image 12
Tarabish, also known by its slang term bish, is a Canadian trick-taking card game of complex rules derived from belote, a game of the Jass family. The name is pronounced "tar-bish", despite the spelling. It is played primarily by the people of Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, in Canada, where, according to one source, it was brought in 1901 by a Lebanese immigrant George Shebib. On the other hand, following comprehensive research Kennedy (1996) states that opinions as to its origin vary and that no "definitive roots may ever be determined." (Full article...) -
Image 13Shelem (Persian: شلم Shělěm), also called Rok or similar, is an Iranian trick-taking card game with four players in two partnerships, bidding and competing against each other. Bidding and trump are declared in every hand by the bidding winner. Both the name and the point structure of this game are similar to the American game Rook, there being a possible connection between the two games. Though it isn't clear from which game it is derived. (Full article...)
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Image 14
Bruus, formerly Brausebart or Brusbart, is a north German card game for four players in two teams of two. It was once highly popular but has since died out except for a few pockets in the state of Schleswig-Holstein. As Brusbart, it was the ancestor of a family of similar games in northern Europe, including Swedish Bräus and Danish Brus which are still played today. Bruus features 'daring and tormenting' which has been said to give the game a certain charm. Once considered the national game of Hamburg, Bruus is a descendant of Karnöffel, the oldest identifiable European card game in the history of playing cards with a continuous tradition of play down to the present day. The game is named after the Bruus or Brusbart, once its top card, but now its second-highest trump. (Full article...) -
Image 15
Konter a Matt, Kontra a Matt or Konter a Midd is a Luxembourgish trick-taking card game played by four players. The game is popular enough to have been televised on RTL, Luxembourg's leading TV station and for tournaments to be organised. Konter a Matt is one of a family of similar games, known as the Couillon Group, played in the Benelux area. Other games in the family include the Belgian game of Couillon, known as Kwajongen in Flemish areas and Kujong in Luxembourg, the Dutch game of Troeven and the Belgian games of Brûte and Gamelle. (Full article...) -
Image 16
Bierkopf ("beer-head") is a trick-taking ace–ten card game for 4 players, played in fixed partnerships. It is a simple version of the Bavarian national game of Schafkopf that is played in Franconia (northern Bavaria) and usually for litre-glasses of beer. It is especially popular in the area of Bamburg. The game is popular enough for regular tournaments to be held.
Bierkopf is recorded being played in Franconia just before the Second World War. It is described as a four-hand partnership game played for penalty points called Bolln represented by a blob on the slate, each one "formerly usually worth 1 or even 2 pints [of beer]." At that time a side hoping to take all tricks could announce a Bucher, which is no longer a feature of the modern game. (Full article...) -
Image 17
Calabresella, Calabragh, sometimes spelt Calabrasella, "the little Calabrian game", also known as Terziglio, is an Italian trick-taking card game variation of Tressette for three players, but it can be played by four with the dealer receiving no cards for the hand. One of the earliest references of the game dates from 1822. (Full article...) -
Image 18
Pilotta (in Greek Πιλόττα) is a trick-taking 32-card game derived from Belote. It is played primarily in Cyprus, being very popular among the Cypriot population, especially the youngsters, who usually arrange “pilotta meetings” in places such as cafés and cafeterias. Its counterpart played in Greece is named Vida (in Greek βίδα). (Full article...) -
Image 19Call-ace whist (Danish: Esmakker Whist) or Danish whist is a card game for four players playing in variable partnerships. It is the most popular form of Whist in Denmark, where it is often just called "Whist". It has a well developed bidding system and has imported from the traditional Danish game of Skærvindsel the feature of determining the partnerships by 'calling an ace'. John McLeod records that there is also a version of Danish whist in which there are fixed partnerships. (Full article...)
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Image 20
Skærvindsel is a Danish card game for four players that is a member of the Schafkopf family. Today it is mostly played in Jutland and is therefore often spelled Sjervinsel, but was previously widespread throughout Denmark. It was the first Danish game where the winner of the auction, the declarer, could choose a partner by calling an Ace. This principle has since been transferred to Call-Ace Whist (Esmakkerwhist). (Full article...) -
Image 21Turkish king (also called Rıfkı) is a Turkish compendium game for four players comprising 20 rounds. It is a variety of the game king, which is popular in France, Belgium, Italy, Portugal, Russia, Colombia, and Brazil. (Full article...)
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Image 22
Bluke or Blook is a trick-taking card game known to parts of the East Coast and the Midwest and possibly other parts of the United States of America. The game features use of the Jokers, which are sometimes referred to as the Blukes. One version goes under the name Back Alley or Blooper and appears to be a game that originated in the American military probably during the Second World War. (Full article...) -
Image 23Bonken is a Dutch trick-taking card game for 4 players that is played with a standard pack of cards. Everyone plays for themselves. It is a compendium game of 11 rounds, each of which has its own goal. The aim of the game is to score as few penalty points as possible. The player who scores the fewest points is declared the winner. (Full article...)
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Image 24
Lorum or lórum is an old, Hungarian, compendium card game for 4 players. Although it is the ancestor of the French game, barbu, it is still played today. It uses a German-suited pack (Hungarian 'William Tell' or German pattern) of 32 cards and comprises 8 individual contracts, each with different rules, each of which is played four times so that a session consists of a total of 32 individual games and lasts about 1½ hours. (Full article...) -
Image 25
Viersche, also called Hundert or Hunderte, is a card game of the ace–ten type for four players that is played in the Wolf valley in the Black Forest region of Germany. (Full article...)
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Selected images
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Image 2The Ober of Bells from a Württemberg-pattern pack (from Binokel)
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Image 3Baronesse pattern (from French-suited playing cards)
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Image 4Dondorf Rhineland pattern (from French-suited playing cards)
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Image 5Bukovina (orange) (from Königrufen)
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Image 7Petrtyl's deck with Indian and American motifs (from Königrufen)
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Image 8Book cover detail of the Illustrirtes Wiener Tarokbuch of 1899 (from Königrufen)
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Image 9Deck celebrating the union of Brittany and France with Spanish suits but has queens instead of knights (Antoine de Logiriera of Toulouse, c. 1500). (from French-suited playing cards)
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Image 10The values of Königrufen cards. The columns (from l to r) are: Card Type, Number, Card Value (from Königrufen)
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Image 11Historically, card games such as whist and contract bridge were opportunities for quiet socializing, as shown in this 1930s magic lantern slide photo taken in Seattle, Washington. (from Card game)
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Image 12Galicia with today's limits (from Königrufen)
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Image 13French Rouen pattern on the left, Spanish Toledo pattern on the right (from French-suited playing cards)
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Image 14A transitional deck with suits of hearts and crescents (François Clerc of Lyon, late 15th century) (from French-suited playing cards)
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Image 15Austrian-style 54-card Tarock hand (from Königrufen)
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Image 17Sigmund Freud indulged in Königrufen in his spare time. (from Königrufen)
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Image 18Chinese mother-of-pearl gambling tokens used in scoring and bidding of card games. (from Card game)
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Image 19Russian pattern (from French-suited playing cards)
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Image 20Modern pack of Tarock cards by Piatnik; Industrie und Glück design, Type 6 by Josef Neumayer, 1890 (from Königrufen)
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Image 21The four lowest trumps from an 18th-century animal Tarock pack (from Königrufen)
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Image 23The standard English (Anglo-American or International) pack uses French suit symbols. Cards by Piatnik (from French-suited playing cards)
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Image 26Belgian pattern (from French-suited playing cards)
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Image 27Pagats by a modern, Central European manufacturer; three type 6, one type 5 (here smaller, in Austria however usually larger than type 6) (from Königrufen)
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Image 28North German pattern: the Kings (from French-suited playing cards)
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