Fun Facts Friday: Dominos
20 December 2013 | Prickly Bay, Grenada
Robyn
Dominos is a very popular game in the Caribbean, almost everyone plays. It is a game I have enjoyed learning and playing since we have arrived in Grenada. Here in Grenada (and throughout most of the Caribbean) we play Mexican Train Dominos, it reminds me a lot of Uno (the card game) complete with knocking when you are down to your last tile. It would be too long and boring to explain the game, but if you are interested here is a link: http://www.mexicantrainrulesandstrategies.com.
In Grenada the game is played a little more laid back than else where in the Caribbean. For instance, in Trinidad, the game is played with a serious ferocity that would be extremely intimidating to someone like me. There is no conversation during the game and each player plays his/her tiles in rapid succession – everyone is very intense! Of course, you will find the random totally intense game or the random totally intense player here in Grenada, but usually you discover (fairly quickly) the player or players are newly arrived from Trini.
I play twice a week, on Wednesdays it is a women only game, on Sunday the game is open to anyone that wants to play. Our games are very friendly and lighthearted in a competitive sort of way! There is a lot of good natured banter and teasing. On Wednesdays, with the women, there is also some gossip exchanged – oh come on people, you didn’t really expect us to talk about the latest bilge pump design did you? After a glass of wine or two there is a lot of giggling too, it is a lot of fun if I do say so myself. I have discovered the amount of social interaction I engage in during the game is directly proportional to my score for the game – the more I talk, the more points I get. In dominos the low score wins.
So for Fun Facts Friday here are a couple of facts about Dominos.
Dominos, like playing cards and dice, are something of a generic gaming device. They are simple building blocks that can be assembled in innumerable ways to create a large variety of games, ranging from the simple to the complex, from games in which the gameplay is almost mechanical, to games that require great skill and strategy.
Dominos are believed to have originated in China in the 12th century, though Egyptian or Arabian origins are also theorized.
Dominos appeared in Italy in the early eighteenth century, and spread to the rest of Europe throughout the remainder of the 1700's, becoming one of the most popular games in both family parlors and pubs alike.
The word "domino" appears to have derived from the traditional appearance of the tiles - black dots on a white background - which is reminiscent of a "domino" (a kind of hood) worn by Christian priests.
Today, dominoes are played all over the world. It is particularly popular in Latin America. Dominos is considered the national game of many Caribbean countries.