Keno has a long history that can be traced through over two thousand years. It is a classic lottery setup that has been slightly changed over the years to meet the demands of the time period, but the basic structure of the game has not changed significantly over the long span of keno history.

Because keno has such a long history there is some uncertainty about the actual moment when the game was created. There is a strong historical camp that claims that Keno was invented by a ruler in the Han Dynasty that was involved in a long and drawn out war. According to his argument, this leader used keno to raise necessary funds to continue the battle. He had been denied additional funding from the authorities so he appealed to the sensibilities of the masses by creating a lottery game where a small entry fee could qualify the player to win a large jackpot.

Not all historians agree with this anecdotal keno history. Historians that do not agree with the military origins of the game point out that public institutions were not funded by lotteries until much later. Despite the quibbles over the details, however, all keno historians agree that the origins of the game lie somewhere in early dynastic China. The game went through a variety of small changes while still contained in China, mostly having to do with the number of squares on the keno card and other Keno rules

Keno came to the United States in the early 19th century when the country experienced large immigration waves. It struck a chord with American audiences, who made small alterations to make it better fit within existing gambling culture. One of the most notable changes during this period was that the traditional Chinese characters were replaced with numerals. Under the strict gambling policies of the United States at the time, the game was considered illegal. It did not make it into big casinos at the time because of its outlawed status, but it continued to be played in the Chinese immigrant communities. During this time it was referred to as the “Chinese lottery”.

In 1931 the United States passed a law that allowed gambling within the borders of the country. It is important to the keno history, however, that this law did not legalize lotteries. This posed a problem for the “Chinese lottery. By this time the game had seeped out of the Chinese communities and was embraced in all gambling corners of the nation. The major casinos at the time came up with an ingenious solution in order to side step the legal restrictions - hey changed the name to “Horse Race Keno” and placed small pictures of horses on the keno cards. While this change may seem minor to modern eyes, it was enough for the censors. They allowed “Horse Race Keno” to enter the casinos as a legitimate casino game.

Nothing is perfect, however, as the keno history shows. A few short years after the game had been altered into a horse racing theme, horse racing became illegal. Fortunately at the same time horse racing was outlawed lotteries were once again considered legal. With another quick name change “Horse Race Keno” was changed to simply “Keno”. The name change has stuck, and there is no sign of going back to the horse theme. You may notice that some players will continue to call each round of Keno a race as a nod to the older terminology. This is particularly prevalent among players that learned the game when the horse racing them was still required by law (see Keno Glossary page).

Keno history has also been shaped by legislation that regulates the payouts. In Nevada that payout for a keno game was limited to $25,000 until 1963. There were small alterations to the upper cap for a keno payout. In the modern gaming culture, all upper caps for keno payouts have been removed. Casinos are allowed to pay out as much as they want to any lucky individual who happens to match all of their numbers. Casinos take full advantage of this fact and advertise extremely large keno jackpots in order to lure customers onto the floor.

The most recent stage in keno history is its transition to online gaming. The internet is making this game available to a younger audience that would not have been exposed to the game in a brick and mortar casino. The internet is also offering the chance for people to play a relaxing round of keno who otherwise would not have the opportunity. Online keno bridges all kinds of borders between groups of gamblers that otherwise would not have met. It is the new frontier for a game that managed to bride borders hundreds of years ago when it bonded new Chinese immigrants with Native Americans.

Keno is not only a game with a rich history, but also offers a promising future! Check out our online casino reviews to pick the perfect spot to play keno.

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