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Encyclopedia ID 635

Mahjong

Also known as 麻将 Májiàng (Guobiao, Sichuan, Guangdong) · Mah-jong · mainland rulesets

Mahjong: photograph by yui*
Photo: yui*, CC BY-SA 2.0, source on Wikimedia Commons

Four players draw and discard tiles to build four sets and a pair; mainland China plays many local rulesets, with Guobiao as the official competition standard.

Heritage note

Part of the living heritage of China, Singapore.

Origins

Usually placed in the era of Crossroads and Golden Ages (about 500 to 1500), although its exact origins are uncertain, within the cultural world of China.

Sources

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