Bingo is one of the most loved games not just in the casino, but practically in the neighborhood or in the living room of a house. Bingo, while being a chance to win prizes big or small, is generally treated by players as a way to interact and socialize with other gamblers.

Just like everything, bingo has origins. It started life as a lotto game in Italy. This game was called the “Lo Gioco del Lotto d’Italia.” Bingo is actually a very old game, with its progenitor created during the 1530s. It became such a hit in Italy that it was eventually imported to France. The French made use of a playing card that can be considered the ancestor of the modern bingo card. This card, however, consisted only of nine columns and three rows as opposed to the five-column, five-row design of today’s cards. The French card also had four free spaces in every row.

Aside from those differences, French bingo worked the same as today’s Bingo albeit simpler. The goal is to complete a whole row, and then you can win a prize. The game is also ruled by numbers, with the number reaching up to 90 in the French version.

The game was simple, and soon it was popular all over Europe during the earlier part of the millennium. In France, it was only played by the members of the higher classes of society. Soon enough it found its way in the other parts of the continent and was gradually adapted by people from all walks of life. It was even modified in Germany during the 19th century. This version, however, was not made to gamble. It was in fact created for children, as a way for them to learn subjects like math, spelling and even history.

It was not until the recent century that bingo found its way to the United States. It had its debut in 1929 at a country fair. Back then, its moniker was “beano.” This is because of the fact that players used dried beans to mark their cards each time a number is called out. Just like French bingo, one has to complete a pattern in order to win. Winning was signified by raising one’s hand and yelling out, “Beano!”

So how did beano become “bingo” as we know it today?

During the fair, a man named Edwin S. Lowe who liked the game so much that he introduced it to friends in his neighborhood. It became an instant hit. In one of these games, one player who was ecstatic of her win yelled out “bingo!” instead of “beano” due to excitement. Lowe, hearing the mistake, decided to coin the name for his game and eventually set out to promote and develop the game.

With the help of math instructor Carl Leffler, Lowe created 6000 bingo cards with different number combinations, a project that was completed in 1930. Lowe’s version of the game debuted at a charity event for a Pennyslvanian church, and the rest is history.