The true history of the origins of the Rummy family of games are not known precisely, although there are many theories on the matter. One such theory is that Rummy comes from the Chinese game of Mahjong that was played extensively in China in the 18th Century. The play pattern in Mahjong and Rummy is similar, although they have their obvious differences also. Many variants of the Mahjong game have been invented, some in the West. It is assumed that, at some point during the swift spread of Chinese immigrants to the West, a version of Mahjong mutated to Rummy.

Another theory is that Rummy was derived from the Mexican game called Conquian. It is also argued that Conquian itself is derived from the Chinese game of Kon Khin, which was a variation of the earlier game Khanhoo. The invention of Conquian itself possibly dates to 17th Century Mexico, although some would argue it was actually invented in Spain and exported to Central America. It made its way to the United States in the late 19th Century, initially via Texas, where its popularity grew. The early references to Conquian in America are to a game called Coon-can, which is an obvious derivative of the Spanish original. Somehow, Coon-can made its way to England, where it became known as Rum. Rum being used in English to mean “odd” or “queer”, which shows that the English initially thought it was a strange game. From there it made its way back across the Atlantic (and around much of the rest of the world) as Rummy. An alternative version of the Conquian origin theory is that the original game was actually Coon-can, which was invented in the American south and exported to Mexico, where it became Conquian. Conquian is certainly a strong candidate for being an ancestor of Rummy as it shares many of Rummy’s characteristics including melding and it involves draw and discard piles.

Another theory says that Rummy was derived from Poker. Poker and Rummy do have obvious similarities, particularly in the way they use sequences, as runs (in Rummy) and straights (in Poker), as well as sets (in Rummy) and three-of-a-kind or four-of-a-kind (in Poker). Indeed, even today, Poker slang for three-of-a-kind is “a set”. The theory states that Rummy is derived from Whiskey Poker, which mutated to Rum Poker, then simply to Rum and finally to Rummy. Thus, in this theory, the derivation (of the name at least) seems to be to do with alcoholic connotations, which differs significantly from the Conquian theory.

As there is no agreement on the origins of Rummy, it is an open question, which may never find an answer. The origins of some of the variants are more definite, although not exactly certain. For instance the most popular version, Gin Rummy, is said to have been invented in New York in the early 20th Century by Elwood T. Baker. Apparently it was christened “Gin” because of its inventors love of the alcoholic drink of the same name.

The popularity of Rummy and particularly Gin Rummy, increased massively in the 1930s as it became a favourite game for famous Hollywood movie stars to play whilst they were relaxing between takes. Gin Rummy was particularly suited to this situation as it is a quick-fire version of Traditional Rummy and therefore relatively quick to play. The playing of Rummy became even more widespread in the Great Depression, as playing cards was a cheap form of entertainment for the cash-strapped citizens of the time. At its peak, Rummy was one of the most played and best known card games in the world. The latter part of the 20th Century saw its popularity wane somewhat as Blackjack and Poker became more popular.

Recently the popularity of Rummy has been on the increase again. This has mainly been due to the start of internet Rummy sites, where players can play online against real people at any time of the day or night, for money or just for fun. Rummy has lagged behind some other games such as Poker and Bingo in its transition to online play. However, it is now beginning to have a strong impact and it may be possible to replicate the Poker boom (which has seen many more people playing the game in real life after having been introduced to it online) and perhaps once again Rummy will be one of the most widely played games in the world.