The Art of Mahjong Tiles
Mahjong is a tile-based game that was developed in China during the Qing dynasty. A standard set consists of 144 tiles based on Chinese characters and symbols.
Understanding the Symbols
Unicode provides a dedicated block for these intricate tiles (U+1F000 to U+1F02B), allowing them to be displayed as text.
- The Dragons: The Red Dragon (🀄) usually represents a "hit" or "center," the Green Dragon (🀅) represents "wealth" or "get rich," and the White Dragon (🀆) represents a "white board" or freedom from corruption.
- The Winds: Representing the four cardinal directions: East (🀀), South (🀁), West (🀂), and North (🀃). Note that in Mahjong, the order is typically East-South-West-North.
- One Bamboo: Uniquely, the "One Bamboo" tile (🀐) is almost always depicted as a bird (often a sparrow or peacock) rather than a single stick.
Usage in Digital Design
Mahjong tiles are among the most detailed characters in the Unicode standard. They are often used in digital design to evoke a sense of strategy, tradition, or to represent gaming culture in Asia.