History of Sic Bo

Sic bo has been around a long time, originating in ancient China and spreading throughout Asia. Some sources say that it originally involved a game with two bricks, perhaps later evolving to being played with dice of some sort. Indeed, sic bo actually means “dice pair”. Nowadays, however, it is actually played widely throughout the world using three dice.

It is thought that the game was originally played by tumbling to bricks between two plates and an overturned bowl, but over time this was adapted to dice and a shaker.

The game was brought to the US by immigrants from China in the early 20th century, but was never widely played in North American casinos until recently. A similar game, called chuck-a-luck, or birdcage, was played in some casinos in recent times, and was no doubt inspired by sic bo. Today, this game has largely been replaced with sic bo.

The game is also known today in some parts as Tai Sai (“lucky dice”), Hi Lo (in the Philippines), and in Macau, it is known as Dai Siu (“big small”, referring to a popular bet). The game is played all over Southeast Asia, China, Korea, and is gaining popularity in the West, possibly due to its appearance in Hollywood films.

One place where sic bo is becoming popular is online, where people from all over the world can enjoy the game for free or for money. Perhaps someday, even physical dice will be obsolete. As online gambling becomes more and more popular, the history of sic bo may be written in electronic text.