History of dama

Answer 1

History

Countries around the world have their own versions of the game called "checkers", a name which gets its roots from North America. In the Philippines and in Armenia, the game is called dama. According to experts, the game actually originated from ancient Egypt. Archaeologist found traces of the game in an excavation dig in Ur, Iraq and speculated that the game existed at around 1400 B.C. Ancient Egyptians called the game "alquerque", which had a 5x5 board with a grid and diagonal lines intersecting the grids. There were only 10 pieces per side, moving along the intersections. Historians claimed the invention of modern checkers evolved from the 12th century game they called "ferses" (or "fierges") which combined the rules of alquerque with the chess. Around the 16th century, the game's name evolved to "dames" and became popular in France. The game was then exported to England and America where the British called it "draughts". In a related research, historians found books written on the game in Spain and in England.