Welcome to the Playing Cards page! Playing cards probably came to Europe in the fourteenth century from the Middle East. There are plenty of references to playing cards from 1377 onwards. Tentative connections have been made with very early cards found in China from the tenth century. It is thought that European playing cards are based on Mamluk playing cards. These Islamic playing cards do not have pictures, instead there is an elaborate suit sign with a title: Malik (King), Na'ib (Viceroy) dan Na'ib Thani (Second Viceroy). The suits are Cups, Polo Sticks, Swords and Coins. Telling fortunes using playing cards is well known as being used by the Gypsies. But wherever cards are played, they are used for divination purposes also. Playing cards vary from country to country according to the number of cards included in each deck, the suits used and which court cards appear. Decks may also come with 2 or more jokers. Usually the jokers are not included in divination but some readers choose to use them and give them Joker the meaning of the Tarot Fool (New developments, fresh starts, taking a risk). However, the Joker is not a descendant of the Tarot Fool. Instead it was an American invention in the 1860's for the game of Juker (now known as Euchre) where it was used as the "Best Bower". By the 1880's the Juker had become the Joker and had started appearing in decks all around the world. For a full list of the meanings for a 52 card deck, click here. For the meanings of the 40 card Spanish Deck (Baraja Española), click here.

CARD DECKS AROUND THE WORLD

Deck	Suits	Court Cards	No. of cards
Standard English/French Divinatory Meanings	Hearts, Diamonds, Clubs and Spades France: Cœurs, Carreaux, Trèfles, Piques Italy: Cuori, Quadri, Fiori, Picche Spain: Corazones, Diamantes, Tréboles, Picas Germany: Herz, Karo, Kreuz, Pik See more card names around the world...	Jack, Queen, King French: Valet, Dame, Roi Italy: Fante, Regina, Re Spanish: Jota, Reina, Rey German: Bube, Dame, König	52
English Variants (36 Cards: Ace and 7-10 plus 2/3/4/6 Hearts plus Face Cards) (32 Cards: Ace and 7-10 plus Face Cards)	Hearts, Diamonds, Clubs and Spades Variant: Hearts, Squares, Clovers and Pikes	Jack, Queen, King	36/32
Southern Italy Carte italiane (40 Cards: Ace-7 plus Face Cards)	Cups, Coins, Staves and Swords Italian: Coppe, Denari, Bastoni, Spade	Page, Knight, King Italian: Re, Cavallo, Fante	40
Spanish Baraja española (48 Cards Ace-9, 10, 11, 12) (40 Cards Ace-7, 10, 11, 12) Divinatory Meanings	Cups, Coins, Staves and Swords Spanish: Copas, Oros, Bastos, Espadas	10 (Sota), 11 (Caballo), 12 (Rey)	48/40
Eastern Germany Deutsches Blatt (36 Cards: Ace (Daus) and 6-10 plus Face Cards)	Hearts, Bells, Acorns and Leaves German: Herz, Schellen, Eichel, Gras/Laub/Blatt/Grün	Under, Over, King German: Unter (Bauer), Ober (Dame), König	36
Switzerland (German-speaking) Schweizer Blatt (36 Cards: Ace & 6-10 plus Face Cards)	Roses, Bells, Acorns and Shields German: Rosen, Schellen, Eichel, Schilten	Underm, Over, King German: Unter, Ober, König	36
Central & Eastern Europe Mitteleuropäisches Blatt Doppeldeutsches Blatt (32 Cards: Ace (Daus) and 7-10 plus Face Cards) (36 Cards: Ace (Daus) and 6-10 plus Face Cards)	Hearts, Bells, Acorns and Leaves German: Herz, Schellen, Eichel, Grün Croatian: Crvena, Bundeva, Žir, Zelena	Under, Over, King German: Unter, Ober, König Croatian: Unter/Dečko, Iber/Kraljica, Kralj	32/36

All these decks have been used for fortune telling purposes over the years. The meanings can vary drastically from one area to another. Unlike the often standardised meanings of the popular Tarot decks (usually based on the Rider-Waite deck), regular playing card meanings still come from a long oral tradition.

For example, the 7 Hearts may mean:

COMPARISON OF 7 HEARTS

Source	Meaning
Traditional English (52 cards)	False hopes and broken promises, an unreliable person.
Traditional English (32 cards)	Contentment. (Reversed: Boredom).
Traditional French (52 cards)	Close lady friend.
Traditional Italian (48 cards)	Jealousy from a lady.
Traditional Spanish (40 cards)	Joy. Happy events. Things work out well despite bad beginnings. Things work out after being at a standstill.
Richard Webster	Card of disagreement, lover's quarrel. Temporary altercation between two people.
Sophia	Reunites people from the past. Joy, spontaneity and romance.
Regina Russell	A pleasant surprise. A repeated occurrence. Peace.
Joan Moore	Romantic dreams come true; wisdom and inner peace follows.
Marthy Jones	Difference of opinion between sweethearts. Gullibility.
Nerys Dee	The card of emotional fulfillment. Emotional energy.
Francis Bevan	A successful new idea, a period of 7.
Hazel Whitaker (32 cards)	A fickle admirer.
Sasha Fenton	Unfaithful or unreliable person. News.
King Midas cards	Arguments with people close to you. Avoid hasty words.
Celestine	Keep plans flexible: you could be let down at the last moment. Romance is well-starred.
Robert Camp	Spiritual love, letting go of personal attachments.
Chita St. Lawrence	Jealousy, envy.
Leeann Richards	A deep and often disconcerting level of intimacy and communication.
Patricia Telesco	Good relationships. Peace with self.
Ana Cortez	The power of love, forgiveness, sickness, surgery.
Gillian Kemp	Your wishes for romantic love are fulfilled on the 7th of a month, in 7 weeks or in July. Positive card. Triumph over adversity.
Mlle Lenormand (36 cards)	Issues of health, energy levels
Camille Le Normand	The thoughts. A weapon. A jewel. (Reversed: A package. Desire.)
Waite (32 cards)	Marriage, if the Querent is a lady, and the issue will be daughters only; if a man, it is destined that he will make a rich and happy marriage.

For a full list of the meanings for a 56 card deck, click here.

Ultimately, you should not worry that these different systems exist. You simply need to decide which system you will use and stick to it! As long as you are consistent and have banished all doubts, it will produce good results.

If you are interested in teaching yourself how to read the cards, I can recommend you taking a look at these excellent books:

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For a full list of the meanings for a 52 card deck, click here.
For the meanings of the 40 card Spanish Deck (Baraja Española), click here.

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