All About Popular Turkish Card Games
In Turkey you will find many different card games and domino games being played, and these games actually make up a huge part of the culture. Most of the time it is men you will see playing these games, and usually in tea gardens, whilst sipping a hot glass of cay and ambling the hours away with friends. You don’t generally see women playing card games, but that’s not to say you won’t and if so, it’s most likely to be at home with their husband or brothers.
So, what types of card games do you need to know about?
Before we get into actual cards, there is one game that you should have a head’s up on, and that’s okey. This is actually a tile game, rather than cards, but it is so ultra-popular that you need to know about it. This is basically the Turkish version of rummy, and whether you see people playing it in person, or you see them playing it on their phones or online, you’ll certainly run into it once or twice.
Let’s talk card games. The most popular Turkish card games you will see are:
- 3-5-8 – The main idea of this game is to 3, 5, and 8 tricks, and the game is for three players. You might see it called Russian King in Turkey, although it’s different from the Russian version
- Pisti – This is a little like ‘snap’, but it is about fishing! The layout is one pile of cards and if the top card is matched, the pack is captured and the player wins
- Papaz Kacti (King Escapes) – The aim of this game is not to be left with a king at the end of the round
- Prafa – Some card games are regional and belong to certain parts of the country, such as this one. This game belongs to the western coast, and is different version of the ‘preference’ card game
- Hoskin – Another regional game, this time belonging to Southern Turkey. This one is very similar to the well known ‘pinochle’ game
- Kapti Kacti (Take and Run) – This is a fast moving card game which is also a fishing game. Cards are taken and captured from the pile of an opponent and the overall layout, until the other player is left with none
- Turk Pokeri – As the name would suggest, this is a Turkish version of poker, and comprises of a 5 card drawer. The deck consists of 24 to 36 cards, and that totally depends on how many people are playing
We should point out that gambling is illegal in Turkey, but that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t happen in certain places, most notably in tourist resorts. You will find large bars and hotels play bingo for the tourists, but it is still not strictly speaking allowed. Guys will often play poker at each other’s houses for cash, rather than doing it out in the open.
Despite the number of card games and their regional differences, tile game still prevail as the most popular. We mentioned okey, and there is another version, okey 101. Okey itself as 106 numbered tiles, and the original version is for four players, who all have 14 tiles as they start. Okey 101 also for four players, but each has 21 tiles to start with. The aim of okey can look quite complicated to those who don’t know it, but the best advice is to simply have a go! Locals will help you out, this is their national game so of course they want to help you learn! Perhaps try practicing with an online version before you go if you really want to impress with your skills.
