Tambola, Housie and Bingo: history and differences

Tambola, Housie, Tombola, Lotto, Bingo. They are all branches of one family of games in which numbers are drawn and players mark them on a card. This page follows the story, as it is usually told, from Italy to India, and then sets the 90-number game we play beside the 75-ball game played in America.

Where the game is said to come from

Games like this are older than written rules, and much of their early history has been passed on by word of mouth. What follows is the commonly told account. Treat the dates as approximate.

Italy: lottery and tombola

The game is usually traced to the Italian national lottery of the 1500s, in which numbers from 1 to 90 were drawn. The range of 1 to 90 that we still use is generally linked to that lottery.

In southern Italy a home version called tombola became a Christmas family game. An often-told story places its origin in Naples in the 1730s, when families are said to have taken the number game indoors for the holiday season, with numbered tokens drawn from a basket and cards to cover. Tombola is still played in Italian homes at Christmas.

France and Germany

A French version known as Le Lotto followed, and is usually described as a pastime of well-off households. In the 1800s, lotto-style games were used in Germany to teach children numbers, spelling and other lessons. The idea of matching a called item to a card turned out to be a handy teaching tool as well as a game.

The United States: from Beano to Bingo

In the United States a fairground game called Beano is said to have been played with dried beans as markers. It was popularised under the name Bingo by a toy seller, Edwin S. Lowe, around 1929. The popular story is that an excited winner shouted "Bingo" in place of "Beano", and the name stuck. The American game settled on 75 numbers and a square card.

Britain and India

In Britain the 90-number game was known as Housey-Housey or Housie. It was popular in the armed forces, and that is how it is usually said to have reached India. Here the game is called Tambola or Housie, and today it belongs to homes, housing societies, kitty parties and festival gatherings.

Why the name Tambola?

Tambola is generally taken to be a form of the Italian word tombola. How the Italian name arrived in India, when the game itself is said to have come through Britain, is not clearly recorded, and we would rather say so than guess. What is certain is that in India today both names are in use. "Housie" is heard more in some cities and "Tambola" in others, and both mean the same 90-number game.

The shout at the end also differs. British and Indian players complete a "Full House", often shortened to "House". American players shout "Bingo".

The two games side by side

	90-number game (Tambola, Housie, UK bingo)	75-ball game (American Bingo)
Numbers used	1 to 90	1 to 75
Ticket or card	A ticket of 3 rows and 9 columns, with 15 numbers and 12 blanks	A square card of 5 rows and 5 columns, with 24 numbers and a free centre square
How columns work	Columns go by tens: 1 to 9, 10 to 19, and so on up to 80 to 90	Columns are headed B, I, N, G and O, and each holds a band of 15 numbers: B is 1 to 15, up to O, which is 61 to 75
How a number is called	By number, often with a nickname: "two little ducks, twenty two"	By letter and number: "B 7", "G 52"
Typical prizes	Lines and Full House, with extras such as Early Five and Four Corners in India	Patterns on the square, such as a row, a column, a diagonal, or the whole card
Sets of tickets	Often printed in books of six tickets that together contain all 90 numbers once	Cards are usually separate, and numbers repeat from card to card

The 90-number ticket

Each row has five numbers and four blanks. The blanks matter: they are why Four Corners uses the first and last numbers of a row, not the corner boxes.

5		23		42		63		81
	16		35	45	54		74
8		28		49		67		89

A Tambola ticket: 3 rows, 9 columns, 15 numbers.

The 75-ball card

The American card has no blanks except the free square in the middle, which counts as already marked.

B	I	N	G	O
3	18	33	49	62
7	22	41	52	66
11	25	FREE	55	70
12	27	38	58	71
15	30	45	60	75

What a book of six tickets means

In the 90-number game, tickets are often printed in strips or books of six. Six tickets carry 6 × 15 = 90 numbers, and a properly made book uses every number from 1 to 90 exactly once. A player who holds the whole book marks a number on every single call.

Tickets made one at a time are different. Each ticket is valid by itself, but two tickets may share some numbers. That is how our printable tickets are made, and for a family game it makes no difference to fairness, because every ticket has the same chance.

What stays the same everywhere

Numbers are drawn at random, one at a time, and never repeated within a game.
Players mark only what is on their own ticket.
The first to complete an agreed pattern must call out to claim it.
A claim is checked against the numbers already called.

The part that every version shares is the company: a room, or a video call, full of people waiting for one number.

Common questions

Are Tambola and Housie the same game?

Yes. They are two names for the 90-number game played in India. The ticket, the numbers and the usual prizes are the same.

Can I use an American bingo card for Tambola?

No. A 75-ball card has no numbers from 76 to 90 and is laid out differently. Use a 3 by 9 Tambola ticket.

Which version does Tambola Pro play?

The 90-number game, with the standard ticket of 3 rows, 9 columns and 15 numbers.

This site is about Tambola as a social game with token prizes such as sweets and small gifts. Groups should follow the rules that apply where they live.