The origin of the game we now know as blackjack go back centuries. Before it was called blackjack, it was known as Ventiuno in 16th century Spain, Vingt-Un or Vingt-et-Un in 17th century France and England, and Siebzehn und Vier or Einundzwanzig in 18th century Germany.
All of these names have a common origin – they all mean twenty-one (even the German Siebzehn und Vier which literally means seventeen and four). In fact, one of the more English popular names for the game was the simple ‘twenty-one’.
So why do we call it blackjack? 
The origins of the name blackjack are lost in time. It seems to have entered popular usage in the America’s as people travelled West to find their fortunes. There are rumours that it was the favoured game of a frontier goldminer name Black Jack. Some say it was because the dealer used to keep a blackjack (a short cudgel or truncheon) hidden to ‘pacify’ unruly gamblers in the gambling dens of the Wild West.
One of the more widely believed theories is that, to promote interest in their establishments, the gambling houses and saloons of the American Frontier used to offer bonus payouts to players whose hand consisted of the ace of spades and a black jack (jack of clubs or jack of spades). These odds could be as high as a ten-to-one payouts.
French card historian Thierry Depaulis claims that it refers to the moneral zincblende that is found with gold and silver deposits and known as blackjack.
Whatever the true origins of the name, everyone knows the thrill of seeing those cards fall and calling out ‘blackjack’!
