Forum Archive : History

The name "backgammon" From:   Jive Dadson Address:   jdadson@ix.netcom.com Date:   22 December 2002 Subject:   Re: The Origin of Backgammon Forum:   rec.games.backgammon Google:   3E067588.7C19A300@ifsdadfasfsda.invalid I read something interesting the other day. I had naturally assumed (as Merriam Webster does) that "gammon" is probably related to the word "game". But I read in a book (_Five Finger Discount_) that there's a place in New Jersey that's colloquially called "Gammontown" or something like that. The name derives for a non-English word that means "left behind". (New Jersey was the first stop for immigrants after they were mustered at Ellis Island. The poorest, tiredest huddled masses never made it any farther.) I forget what language the word comes from. Irish, I presume. It makes perfect sense. When you gammon the opponent, it's because his checkers have been badly left behind. Compare that to the lurch in cribbage, and the phrase "left in the lurch." The etymology guy at Merriam Webster is probably getting tired of hearing from me. :) Jive Jive Dadson  writes: April 2007 It's me again. I found another reference to Gammontown (googling). It comes from the Dutch word "gemeen," one meaning of which is "abandoned."   Did you find the information in this article useful?           Do you have any comments you'd like to add?

 

History

Backgammon in China  (Mark Driver, Jan 2001) 

Backgammon variants  (Raccoon, Aug 2003) 

Books on the history of backgammon  (Albert Steg, Aug 1998) 

Changes in backgammon over the years  (Joe Russell, July 2009) 

Doubling in the 17th Century?  (David Levy+, Dec 2003) 

Murray's "History of Boardgames Other than Chess"  (Dean Jameson, Apr 2002) 

Origin of backgammon  (Greycat Sharpclaw, Oct 1997) 

Recent changes  (Joe Russell+, July 2009) 

The effect of bots on the game  (Daniel Murphy+, May 2005) 

The name "backgammon"  (Jive Dadson+, Dec 2002) 

The name "backgammon"  (Marina Smith, Jan 1998) 

The name "backgammon"  (Albert Steg, Mar 1995) 

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