 Kvitlech cards | |
| Origin | Galician Jews |
|---|---|
| Release date | Late 18th or 19th century |
| Players | 5+[1] |
| Cards | 24 or 31[1][2] |
| Related games | |
| Twenty-One,Pontoon,Dreidel | |
Kvitlech (Yiddish:קוויטלעך,lit. 'notes', 'slips')[note 1] is acard game similar toTwenty-One played in someAshkenazi Jewish homes during theHanukkah season.
The game and deck were likely created byHassidic Jews living inGalicia during the late 18th or 19th century.[3] Most packs used to play the game consist of 24 cards with identical pairs numbered from 1 to 12. The pack may have originated fromHexenspiel decks by stripping them of picture cards so as to avoididolatry.[4][5] Jews did not use popularplaying cards because of the crosses and otherChristian symbols found on them, using instead an (often handmade) deck of cards calledkvitlekh,lamed-alefniks (lit. 'thirty-oners'),klein Shas (lit. 'smallTalmud'), ortilliml (lit. 'smallBook of Psalms').[6] The cards were decorated withHebrew numerals and common objects such as teapots, feathers, and sometimes portraits ofbiblical heroes.[7][2]Piatnik & Söhne of Vienna was the largest producer of these cards during the 19th and 20th centuries which helped spread the game among Jews living inAustria-Hungary and their North Americandiaspora.
| Advantage play |  | |
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| Miscellaneous | ||
| Community | ||
