Jokers: Why Do They Even Exist?

While ditching the Jokers prior to a game of Texas Hold’em last week, it occurred to my friends and I that we had no idea why the Jokers were even in the deck. However, the game started and I forgot about our quandary until just recently. I set to researching the history of this comedic card and came up with some interesting, albeit not totally conclusive facts about our funny and often forgotten friend.

The Standard 52-card Deck: A Brief History

Before understanding where the Joker came from, it’s first important to give a bit of background on the standard, 52 card deck.

The deck most of us are used to playing with has its origins in the standard Major Arcana and Minor Arcana Tarot card deck - minus the knight cards.

Around the 15th century the deck began to take shape as a recognizable relative of the deck we see today. The ancestor of the modern Joker in our modern deck is the classic Tarot's Fool.

The Joker Is No Fool

One of the main differences between the Fool and the Joker is that the Fool belongs to a set of 22 trumps and as such, does not stand alone. This said, like the Joker, the Fool can also take high ranking cards. Furthermore, also like the Joker, the Fool card is usually worth nothing on its own and only holds sway in relation to other cards. Think of Joker’s Wild games, where the Joker can stand in for any other card to make for a better hand, but on its own, is relatively powerless.

It is commonly held that the Joker appeared as part of the card deck circa the 1860’s. At this time, Euchre was a wildly popular game. Under the British rules of Euchre, there is a card known as the Imperial Bower - or, as it became known in the USA, the Best Bower. This card trumps all other cards.

The Joker Appears in Europe

The etymology of "Bower" is the German word "Bauer" used in Alsace which is where Euchre or Juker originated - Juker being the word for "Jack." At some point in the 1870’s, this Bower card evolved into the Joker. Europe witnessed both the arrival of the Joker and, coincidently, poker, in the 1880s.

It may seem odd to venerate a character like a joker – a ridiculous prankster. However, it is important to keep in mind Tarot thrived in the Renaissance, an age which had outgrown the shackles of extreme rationalism proscribed by the medieval era. During the Renaissance, people were more inclined to embrace their curiosity. An inquisitive mind was increasingly valued and individuals were encouraged to roam and to explore.

Consider this: The original name for the card was il Matto, an Italian word that is actually more aptly translated as ‘The Lunatic’ or ‘The Madman’, rather than the Fool. Many cultures held ancient beliefs that madness, or fits, or spells, were actually a sign of a connection with a greater power. Think of the stories in religious text, of Job, of Moses, of Mohammad and so on. So, while the there is an element of ridiculousness attached to the Joker card today, its origins belie a far more omnipresent influence and can explain why such a bumbling harlequin is imbued with so much influence.

As it stands now, the Joker is the most coveted card to card collectors around the world, owing to its stunning variety of styles and incarnations.

- Patricia Lang, Tower Gaming Media Room Manager