» Facts About The Game Of Keno

Keno, a game similar to the big state or provincial lotteries, is easy to play and one of the most popular games in any casino. Keno was introduced in China by its head of state more than 2000 years ago. But the appearance of keno is wrapped in a mystery. Several different versions exist.
The generally accepted theory is that the game was invented during some war in China when the army needed money badly. The citizens refused to contribute additional funds to the fruitless cause of the war. So Cheung was left scratching his head as to how to generate the necessary finances to continue his brutal battles. At last he managed to create a very easy and effective means of getting money. That was the game of keno. Keno was so successful that it can be said to be the reason for Cheung's victory. It also contributed resources to building the Great Wall! Later keno was known as the White Pigeon game as people of surrounding villages were informed of the winning numbers by carrier pigeons.
The keno board didn't always look the same way. The Chinese classic characters were used instead of numbers. If at first the game included 120 characters, this number dropped to 80 in the course of time.
Keno appeared in the US in the 19th century as a lot of Chinese people came there to work on the railroads. Although initially outlawed, Keno continued to be played in secrecy by these new immigrants. It continued to use Chinese characters and thus obviously didn't enter popular mainstream American culture until it was modified to include the numerical system.