Baccarat is a card comparing game played between two hands, the player and the banker, with the object of predicting which hand will have a total value closer to nine. Face cards and tens count as zero, other cards count at face value, and totals above nine drop their tens digit. The game's history is traced to gambling houses in Italy and France beginning in the late medieval and early modern periods, and it later became strongly associated with high-stakes casino play in Europe and Asia, remaining a staple of casino floors worldwide.
Facts
Disputed
Originating RegionItaly or France (disputed) 2 sources disagree on both century and place, one theory places the game in 19th century France, a rival theory traces it to late 15th century Italy carried to France by soldiers of the Italian Wars Classification
Player Count Sport
Game Type (category) Connections
Associated With
Blackjack, Games Blackjack and baccarat are both classed as banking card games, in which every player plays against a single banker or dealer rather than against each other, distinguishing them from trick-taking and rummy-family card games where players compete directly against one another.
Source The Oxford Guide to Card Games
In the Other Atlases
Found In
Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.
Sources
1. Pagat (John McLeod): Baccarat
Pagat (John McLeod)Introduction
Although many players may bet on the outcome, it is essentially a two-player game between the 'Banker' and the 'Player'.
History
The first known published description is in the book Album des jeux de hasard et de combinaisons by Charles Van-Tenac (1847).
View the Source 2. Baccarat, Wikipedia
Lead section
Baccarat is a comparing card game played between two hands, the "player" and the "banker".
History section, opening paragraph
The origins of the game are disputed. Some sources claim that it dates to the 19th century, others that the game was introduced into France from Italy at the end of the 15th century by soldiers returning from the Italian Wars during the reign of King of France Charles VIII.
View the SourceThe Oxford Guide to Card Games
Oxford University Press, 1990Associated With: Blackjack
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.
View At A Past Year
Choose a year to see this entry's facts and connections as the atlas records them at that moment: what it held then, what it held instead, and what it had not yet adopted. Choose Present for the current record.