The Renaissance of Mahjong:Getting Popular in US!

近日，美国路易斯安那州地方电视台Knoe 8 News发布了一则贴文，记录了当地百姓热火朝天搓麻将的情景，并配文：

一项传统的桌游最近火了。麻将（májiàng / mahjong）不再是大妈们的专属，这潮流已席卷全国。

An old fashioned table game is getting more play than ever. Mahjong is no longer for the grandmas and it's sweeping the nation.

“这游戏与众不同。如果你的奶奶打起麻将，那你妈妈也一定会打，人们几乎忍不住诱惑，都想摸起牌就玩，多么有历史（lìshǐ / history）感，这是完美的传承。”视频中一位路易斯安那州的麻友说道。

"It's like no other game. And it's got such history, such beautiful tradition, that if your grandmother played it and then your mother played it, it's almost impossible not to want to pick up the tiles and start to play," says one mahjong addict in Louisiana.

20年代初，麻将传入美国，从那时起，这种类似金拉米牌的神奇棋牌游戏就逐渐成为美国人热衷的娱乐（yúlè / recreation）消遣之一。

The fascinating, gin rummy-like game has evolved to become a popular American pastime since it was first introduced to the US in early 1920s.

据报道，美国有至少50万人会打麻将，这一数字来自国家麻将联盟的统计，据称，该协会有50万会员（huìyuán / member）。

According to the report, mahjong is now being played by at least half a million people in the US. That number come from the National Mahjong league, which claims to have 500,000 members.

麻将联盟管辖所有与美国麻将相关的事情。

The league serves as the arbitrator for everything that relates to the American Mahjong. 

▲ National Mahjong League

1937年该联盟刚成立时，仅仅有32名成员，后来逐渐从一个销售行规卡片的经济组织蜕变成跨越全美的慈善机构。

It started with just 32 members when it was founded in 1937 to standardize the game. Each year proceeds from sales of the league's official rules cards go directly to charitable organizations across the country.

1999年，美国的第二个麻将组织——全美麻将协会成立，至今仍负责举办北美地区麻将锦标赛。

In 1999, a second organization was formed, the American Mahjong Association. The AMJA currently hosts tournaments all across North America.

记者看到，美国人打麻将，都会在桌边放一张小卡片。" 这是美国麻将联盟发布的年度美式麻将规则（guīzé / rule）卡，" 布莱恩特公园的麻将区组织者琳达 · 费希尔向记者介绍中国麻将和美式麻将的区别。

"We play with a card, a mahjong card," Linda Fisher, Bryant Park's mahjong area organizer, explained major differences between Chinese and American/Jewish style of the game.

1895年，英国汉学家威廉姆·亨利·温克森在论文中提到了一种在中国中部地区十分流行的卡牌游戏（yóuxì / game）——“麻雀”，他认为“麻雀”就是麻将的起源。

In 1895, British sinologist William Henry Wilkinson wrote a paper which mentioned a set of cards known in central China by the name of ma chioh, literally, hemp sparrow, which he maintained was the origin of the term Mahjong.

二十世纪二十年代，麻将传入美国，并成功地打入华盛顿特区。

The game was imported to the United States in the 1920s and became a success in Washington, D.C.. 

1920年，约瑟夫·帕克·巴布科克出版了《麻雀守则》，也被称作麻将“红宝书”。这是最早出现在美国的麻将玩法。

Also in 1920, Joseph Park Babcock published his book Rules of Mahjong, also known as the "red book". This was the earliest version of Mahjong known in America.