According to research by a Stanford professor, both the Chinese American and Jewish American communities were built around mahjong during the 20th Century, reports Patch.
“You’ll hear people talking about playing with their mahjong group for over 40 years,” Annelise Heinz said, “and they have seen each other through births, deaths and divorces.”
Parker Bros, which is now a subsidiary of Hasbro, sold a version of mahjong in the 1920s.
Heinz found the game gave many Chinese Americans a cultural bond and that it gave Jewish American women a way to build their social networks.
You can read a lot more about Heinz research in Patch.
