| The earliest backgammon board so far | | | | move anti-clockwise. Tabula used three dice |
| discovered in ancient Mesopotamia (today's | | | | and according to the results shown on the |
| Iraq) dates back some 4,600 years! There is | | | | dice, three checkers could be moved. In |
| no other game that can compete with the claim | | | | common with much of today's Internet |
| that to play backgammon was the original | | | | backgammon Tabula was played as a type of |
| pastime. It is interesting to note that the | | | | backgammon gambling rather than for the fun |
| appearance of the backgammon set, and the | | | | of the game alone. |
| backgammon board have not significantly | | | | |
| changed from the times when the game was | | | | Following on the breakup of the Roman Empire, |
| enjoyed by the ancient Egyptians, Persians | | | | backgammon type of games continued to spread |
| and the Romans. | | | | through both the Middle East and Europe. The |
| | | | origins of the term "Backgammon" has been |
| It is hard to know for sure that the | | | | traced back to the Anglo-Saxon expression for |
| backgammon rules known today do not differ | | | | a game. The name seems to have first come |
| substantially from the backgammon | | | | into use in 1600's England. In 1743 an |
| instructions that might have been printed | | | | Englishman called Edmond Hoyle wrote a |
| inside the package of some ancient backgammon | | | | Treatise on Backgammon, which provided the |
| sets, if the ancients would have got round to | | | | first written work setting out in a |
| commercially producing the game. Since no | | | | systematic fashion the rules determining the |
| ancient printed sets of backgammon rules have | | | | backgammon set up and the movement of pieces. |
| yet been discovered, it is very much a matter | | | | |
| of conjecture if the moving of pieces and the | | | | Over the last hundred years backgammon has |
| backgammon strategy followed thousands of | | | | continued to develop. The introducing of the |
| years ago corresponds with the strategy that | | | | doubling cube in America of the 1920's |
| players follow today. | | | | provided a boost for the backgammon gambling |
| | | | industry. Over the last few decades, the |
| The spread of backgammon around the world can | | | | development of backgammon software has |
| be traced. Records have been found of the | | | | resulted in a new, exciting phase of the game |
| popularity of a Roman version of backgammon | | | | that has brought it into high profile as |
| called Tabula (from the Latin for board) with | | | | online backgammon attracts an increasing |
| the Roman Emperor Claudius included amongst | | | | number of fans, and spreads interest in the |
| its most famous players. Like the game we | | | | game beyond its traditional group of players. |
| know today Tabula had 15 checkers. It seems | | | | Try out a free game of backgammon on the net |
| that the game was played with checkers | | | | and see what all the hype is about. |
| entering the board from square one and being | | | | |