• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer
Zippy Facts Logo

Zippy Facts

Interesting Random Facts

  • Animals
  • Culture
  • Firsts
  • Food
  • Geography
  • Health
  • History
  • Inventions
  • Language
  • Mythology
  • Odds
  • People
  • Religion
  • Science
  • Space
  • Universe
  • World
You are here: Home / Language / How Did the Card Game Poker Get its Name and What Does it Mean in German?

How Did the Card Game Poker Get its Name and What Does it Mean in German?

March 31, 2020 by Karen Hill

A card game called poque was introduced to America by French gamblers in New Orleans.

Both the name and the game came from the German word pochspiel, which literally means “boast game,” while the derivative pochen means “to knock.”

This knock on the table is still part of the many forms of poker and indicates that a player is passing on a bet.

In a Southern drawl, poque was “pok-uh,” which, when spread to the rest of the country, became “poker.”

Related Facts

  • History of Playing Cards
  • The Best 20 Inventions Ever Invented
  • History of Christmas Cards
  • How many possible hands are in a game of five-card poker?
  • How do Credit Card Companies stop you from getting a credit card under a false name?
  • Where does the phrase “to pass the buck” come from and What does it mean?

Filed Under: Language

About Karen Hill

Karen Hill is a freelance writer, editor, and columnist. Born in New York, her work has appeared in the Examiner, Yahoo News, Buzzfeed, among others.

Previous Post: « Where Did the Term “Bluff” Come From and What Does the Word Mean?
Next Post: Where Did the Word Trump Used in Card Games Come From and What Does the Term Mean? »

Footer

Follow

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • GitHub
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Medium
  • Pinterest
  • StumbleUpon
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Categories

Accomplishments Animals Culture Firsts Food Geography Health History Inventions Language Mythology Odds People Religion Science Space Universe World Your Body

About

Zippy Facts empowers the world by serving educational content that is accessible to everyone.

A tribute to growing up, zippyfacts.com showcases interesting and unusual facts about the world.

Our mission is to use technology to facilitate knowledge transfer and sharing.

Copyright © 2020 Zippy Facts

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy Policy