The panoramic views of the lake from Tali Stepp’s beautiful Glade Springs home were being totally ignored. As was the summer sunshine gleaming through the windows of Carmen Cruz’s gracious house in Stanaford Acres. Instead, the women gathered were paying rapt attention to the small plastic tiles in front of them featuring dragons, dots and flowers. Spirited conversation flowed freely; however, words like “pong” and “chow” were occasionally tossed into the mix. Finally, someone happily announced “Mahjong,” and the game ended. But not for long. Mahjong is an ancient Chinese gambling game played all over the world in a number of variations. Long popular in New York, the game gets a good share of play among retirees in Florida. West Virginia is catching up.

In Glade Springs, Ying Wei Mulready has taught a number of groups the game, which combines concentration, strategy, and good, old-fashioned luck. Mulready, a native of Hong Kong, says she probably learned the game “… in my mother’s tummy.” Coming to the United States in 1973, she first lived in New York City and has also played the game in her husband’s homeland, Australia. She brought it with her 24 years ago when West Virginia became her home.

Mulready describes the game as “classic old-style Chinese” but also “… probably very different from the version my mother’s generation played 50-60 years ago. Since Mahjong is played all over the world, many military families pick it up and add variations, and we have combined elements of the military version with the classic style.”

Historians once thought Confucius, the great Chinese philosopher, developed the game in about 500 B.C. According to this theory, the appearance of the game in the various Chinese states coincided with Confucius’ travels at the time.

Confucius was also fond of birds, a fact used to explain the name “mahjong,” which means sparrow. However, there is no evidence of mahjong’s existence before the Taiping era in the 19th century, eliminating Confucius as a likely inventor.

Many historians believe it was based on a Chinese card game called Madiao in the early Ming dynasty. This game was played with 40 paper cards similar in appearance to the cards used in the game Ya Pei, numbered one to 9 in four different suits, along with four extra flower cards. This is quite similar to the numbering of mahjong tiles today, although mahjong only has three suits and, in effect, uses four packs of cards.

There is still some debate about who created the game. One theory is that Chinese army officers serving during the Taiping Rebellion invented the game to pass the time. Another theory is that a nobleman living in the Shanghai area created the game between 1870 and 1875. Others believe that two brothers from Ningpo designed mahjong from the earlier game of M_diào around 1850.

The game was banned by the government of People’s Republic of China when it took power in 1949, as it involved gambling, which was regarded as a symbol of capitalist corruption. After the Cultural Revolution, the game was revived, without gambling elements, and the prohibition was revoked in 1985.

In 1895, American anthropologist Stewart Culin authored a paper in which mahjong was mentioned. This is the first known written account of mahjong in any language other than Chinese. Abercrombie & Fitch sold the first mahjong sets in America in 1920. The game became so successful in New York the company owner, Ezra Fitch, sent emissaries to Chinese villages to buy every set of mahjong they could find. Abercrombie & Fitch sold a total of 12,000 sets.

Also in 1920, Joseph Park Babcock, who had learned mahjong while living in China, wrote his book “Rules of Mah-Jongg,” known as the “red book.” This was the earliest version of mahjong known in America. Babcock’s rules simplified the game to make it easier for Americans to take up, and his version was common through the mahjong craze of the 1920s. When the mahjong fad of that era died out, many of Babcock’s simplifications were abandoned.

The local ladies playing mahjong may not know the history of the game. They just enjoy the challenge of playing. And the stakes are high. This is a gambling game, and in Glade Springs, the ladies play for money. A pot of $4 is on each table. But in this version of mahjong, even the “losers” can win money, based on the points they have accrued during the game. Different tiles are worth different numbers of points, and having a set of “doubles” is vital.

It is a game where you must be able to envision the “possibilities and probabilities to play,” according to Mulready. But for the women playing, winning or even racking up points is secondary to enjoying each other’s company and giving their minds a good workout. Mulready explains that the translation of “sparrow” is also descriptive of the sounds of the voices of those playing around the tables. In China, games can go on for long days and into the night, and talking is a major part of activities. She said there are parlors for playing, similar to American bingo parlors. In New York and Florida, groups engage in mahjong marathons that can continue for days. And for the serious players, the pots are substantially more than $4.

Mulready taught the Glade Springs groups the game in four weekly classes. She says playing is the best way to learn, and the free classes consist of 15 minutes of description, with the rest of the time spent practicing. And her students all agree the game is addictive. Sandy Maiolo describes mahjong as “unique. It’s steeped in tradition and there many rules to learn.” Tali Stepp said she “…knew nothing about mahjong, and it was nice to learn something new. It is challenging.”

Sharon Stobbart says what started as a winter game is now played year-round and is just plain “fun.” The ladies take turns hosting the weekly matches. Kathie Benton calls mahjong “intriguing.” She says the most commonly known game she can use for comparison is gin rummy. “There are lots of rules, but it is lots of fun. We’ve even learned some of the Chinese language.”

Terry Rojas says the game is played differently in the Philippines, but the basic concepts are the same. She says the older Chinese version is “…more true to the original. The Chinese would probably never play the Filipino version. But no matter how you play, it is a wonderful way to socialize, and it is addictive,” she said. As the Stanaford Acres ladies play, the tiles are not upright in racks. They build walls with their tiles, and unlike the version played in Glade Springs, they do not play by direction, going east or west. They simply throw the dice to determine who goes first. And not even $4 is at stake — these ladies play purely for fun.

Jacqui Yee was introduced to the game by her husband, Dr. Robert Yee, who is Chinese. She said while traveling in China, her guide noted it was common for the men to be inside playing mahjong while the women worked the fields. “The Chinese are so familiar, they recognize the tiles simply by touch. My husband’s father played for pennies, which he kept in a jar. After he passed away, we would always put his penny jar on the table while we played,” she said.

Rojas said in the Philippines, the game is often played when families gather for funerals. “Our wakes go on for two weeks, not two days like in America,” she explained. “So the families gather at night and play mahjong, sometimes all night. On hot nights, players gather outside and play under a street light. Other times, they start a game on a Saturday night, and in the morning they are writing checks to the winners before going to church.”

Carmen Cruz is still learning to play the game from Belen Sultan, who is the expert of the Stanaford Acres group. Sultan sat with Cruz as she put her tiles together and plotted her strategy. But for those who think the game might be difficult, Sultan disagrees. “There is luck and strategy. It is really better to be lucky than good,” she says. Indeed, while Rojas waited patiently for certain tiles she needed to win, Cruz managed to mahjong simply by the luck of the draw.

Rojas says she has taught mahjong to her teenage grandchildren, who enjoy the game very much. But it is a game for all ages. Mulready stresses it is a very good game for seniors to keep their minds active, to meet new friends, and to enjoy the company of others. She is happy to teach others, and advises those wanting to learn to form a group of four and contact her at ladymahjong@suddenlink.net.