Backgammon aka tabula - one of the Roman's favorite pastimes

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With the popularity of the backgammon Internet game, there may be some backgammon enthusiasts who imagine that this game is a relatively modern creation, but nothing could be further from the truth. The backgammon board game is one of the oldest pastimes known to man, with a history going back over five thousand years.

Backgammon aka tabula was one of the Roman's favorite pastimes, and they played a major role in spreading the game throughout their vast empire. The term "tabula" comes from the Latin for table, and it is also the origin of the common England noun "table". Even the highest levels of Roman society, from the emperor Claudius downwards, were keen backgammon aka tabula players. We may hazard a guess that Claudius probably never lost a game since in view of his bloodthirsty reputation no opponent would have wanted to take the risk of losing to him!

Backgammon aka tabula shared many features in common with the game we know today. Most importantly the game had the same objective - to be the first player to bear off all their checkers. The twenty-four divisions of the board, the allocation of fifteen checkers per player and the determination of moves according to the throw of the dice were all basic elements in tabula. In addition, backgammon aka tabula was also played for stakes, but unlike the modern game the concept of playing for fun alone was unknown. Other key differences included the use of rectangular shaped point instead of the familiar triangular points, and the entering of checkers onto the board from the first square from where they would be moved in an anti-clockwise direction.