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Card games in Ethiopia

This page is part of the National and Regional Card Games Index of the Card Games Web Site.

Seka is reported to be a popular card game. Presumably this is a version of the Russian gambling game of the same name. In the Russian game, three (in some versions two or four) cards are dealt to each player from a 36-card pack, and the players bet on who has the best hand. The value of the cards is ace 11, pictures 10 each, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6 face value. Only cards of one suit are counted, so for example K-9-7 is worth 16. An exception is that three cards of the same rank can all be counted - for example 9-9-9 is worth 27. Also, exceptionally, a pair of aces is worth 22 but no other pair counts. I would be interested in any details of the Ethiopian versions of Seka.

Business is a rummy game similar to 500 Rummy. It is said to be popular in Addis Ababa. Eight cards are dealt to each player and eight overlapped face up to begin the discard pile. The dealer plays first and the winner (highest scoring player) in each hand deals the next.