Hanafuda (Flower Cards)
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Hanafuda (花札, “flower cards”) are traditional Japanese playing cards comprising a 48-card deck divided into twelve suits, each associated with a month of the year. Every suit contains four cards depicting seasonal plants—such as pine for January or cherry blossom for March—rather than numerical values.
Cards are grouped into four functional categories used across many Hanafuda games: bright (hikari), animal (tane), ribbon (tanzaku), and chaff (kasu), each carrying different scoring weight depending on the game being played.
Hanafuda emerged in Edo-period Japan following repeated bans on Western-style playing cards. In response, makers developed abstract, non-numerical imagery that allowed card play to continue while avoiding explicit foreign symbols. Although the deck itself is a distinct card type, many traditional Hanafuda games make use of Mekuri-style mechanics, in which cards are revealed, compared, and captured rather than played to tricks.
By the 19th century, the now-familiar twelve-month structure had become standardised. The Marufuku Nintendo Company, founded in 1889, was established specifically to manufacture Hanafuda decks and remains historically central to their production and survival.
Cards are grouped into four functional categories used across many Hanafuda games: bright (hikari), animal (tane), ribbon (tanzaku), and chaff (kasu), each carrying different scoring weight depending on the game being played.
Hanafuda emerged in Edo-period Japan following repeated bans on Western-style playing cards. In response, makers developed abstract, non-numerical imagery that allowed card play to continue while avoiding explicit foreign symbols. Although the deck itself is a distinct card type, many traditional Hanafuda games make use of Mekuri-style mechanics, in which cards are revealed, compared, and captured rather than played to tricks.
By the 19th century, the now-familiar twelve-month structure had become standardised. The Marufuku Nintendo Company, founded in 1889, was established specifically to manufacture Hanafuda decks and remains historically central to their production and survival.
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