Blackjack is a game that has evolved throughout history and was first introduced by the Romans. The Romans played a game similar to blackjack using wooden cards that were marked in such a manner that the blocks held different denominations. This original version of blackjack was played head to head, meaning it was a two-player game.

As the Roman influence spread throughout Europe, other cultures began to adopt this card game. As a result of this evolution, it is believed that the form of casino blackjack as we know it today is a direct ancestor of the French variation of the Roman card game, as the French version of blackjack was known as twenty-one. Though in France back in the 1700‘s, this game was called Vingt et un, which is nothing more than twenty-one in the French language.

From France, this game made its way to the USA in the early nineteenth century, where it was played with a single deck of cards privately amongst family and friends until formal casino gambling was legalized in 1931. When casino gambling was made legal in the USA, the game of Twenty-one was offered in casinos. However, the game was not as popular as some of the other games of chance offered. As a result, casinos such as The Flamingo began paying a special rate when players received a black jack and a black ace in their initial two cards. These players were paid ten to one on their wager. Thus, when a player would receive a black ace, the would get excited and shout for a black jack to follow. Hence, Casinos changed the name of the game to Blackjack, which is how we know it today.

As the game of blackjack increased in popularity amongst the casinos in the USA, the house began tightening up their payouts of blackjack. The game was catching on and casinos believed it was due more to the renaming of the game and the excitement of the game, as opposed to the high payouts for the black jack and black ace cards. Over time, casinos adopted a higher than normal payout for any hand dealt that possessed a value of twenty-one, regardless of the color of the cards. However, this payout is typically well under the ten to one rate at which blackjack in its purest form was paid in times past.

While blackjack remains fairly consistent with respect to the overall blackjack rules and objectives, many casinos offer their own unique spin on the rules of blackjack. Each slight variation in how blackjack is played causes the house edge to increase or decrease. Today, blackjack is played in casinos with a varying number of decks. Most casinos offer blackjack using multiple decks, as opposed to providing play with a single deck as was done in the earlier stages of blackjack play.