Bingo is one of the most popular games involving numbers. It is a casual game and no particular skills are needed, but at the same time it is popular with maths aficionados as it involves numbers. There are multiple variants of bingo, especially in this day and age – the age of online bingo.
The history of bingo is quite interesting and eventful, even though there aren’t too many details on the early days of bingo. Bingo originates from Italy, and the game was developed from a lotto version known as Lo Giuoco Del Lotto D’Italia which roughly translates the Lotto game of Italy. Even though lotto and bingo are considered to be different games, there are plenty of similarities between the two. This game was quite popular in 16th century Italy.
By the 18th century the game made its way to France where it was known simply as Le Lotto. The game that was popular in France during this period was almost identical to modern British (90-ball) bingo. During the 19th century the game became popular in the UK and Germany.
Modern Bingo – From The 20th Century Onwards
The British took the game to the next level, and during the 20th century bingo halls started popping up all over the country, particularly in the East End of London. British bingo comes with one interesting twist – Bingo Lingo. Bingo Lingo is based on the popular cockney rhyming slang. Instead of reading the actual number that comes up, the caller calls a phrase that rhymes with the number, or implies the particular number in another way. For example, if the number 52 comes up the caller might call Chicken vindaloo, whereas if 48 comes up he’ll say four dozen – as 12 times four is 48.
The list of British bingo nicknames is pretty creative and new phrases are added on a regular basis, whereas some of the old phrases fall out of fashion.
US Bingo
A different variant of bingo is popular in the US – 75-ball bingo, where the layout features five rows and five columns and either 25 or 24 numbers, depending on the particular variant. The US bingo variant is rendered to be somewhat faster than the UK version. In the past, players in the UK were most likely to play and be familiar only with 90-ball bingo, whereas US bingo plans could only play 75-ball bingo. However, since bingo online became an option, players are no longer restricted in terms of which variant they can play.
21st Century And The Rise Of Online Bingo
The history of bingo is quite interesting, but it hasn’t been that dynamic until the beginning of the 21st century, when online bingo became possible thanks to the multiple online bingo sites that have been launched.
Not only were players from the UK able to try out American bingo and vice-versa, but also a range of new bingo variants appeared and gained prominence. Unlike land-based bingo halls where time and space are limitations that determine the number and type of games that can be offered, online sites can offer as virtually as many variants as they like.
Thus 80-ball bingo came about, a variant that’s somewhat faster than 90-ball bingo, albeit smaller than American 75-ball bingo. Instant bingo is another name for 30-ball bingo, another variant that is popular online.
Branded Bingo Games
Finally, we have branded or thematic bingo games, variants of bingo that are based on popular TV shows, quizzes, films, or online slot games that were popular with players, so that providers decided to launch similar bingo games.
All in all, it is a lot easier for bingo players nowadays, as they can play bingo without leaving their home, and there are a lot of different variants that are available. It is even possible to play bingo on a mobile device.