Card games in Afghanistan

Panjpar is a two-player game featured in the novel "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini. It is related to the Russian game Prostoy Durak but uses a full 52-card pack.

Gyula Zsigri reports that the standard 52 card pack is also used in Afghanistan for the following games:

  • Teka - a plain-trick game with bidding for four players in fixed partnerships.
  • Fis Kut - a plain-trick game for four players in fixed partnerships, in which the non-dealer's team chooses trumps.
  • Betrinu - a three card vying game related to Brag.
  • Chor Voli - a partition game for 4 players in which four 3-card combinations are formed from a 13-card hand. There is also a variant Ramchi for three players, making five 3-card combinations from a 17-card hand.

Gyula Zsigri has provided a Eastern Farsi Card-Playing Glossary, showing how these card game names are written and pronounced.

The page Card Games in Afghanistan briefly describes Panjpar and two other games:

  • Dozdakaan - a game related to the Sri Lankan game Juse and the 19th century English game Muggins.
  • Nowrang - a rummy game with 10-card hands.
This page is maintained by John McLeod (john@pagat.com).   © John McLeod, 2000, 2008, 2016. Last updated: 5th May 2020

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