In 1895, Stewart Culin, an American anthropologist, wrote a paper in which mahjong was mentioned.

Shortly after this Jaques imported the first Mah Jongg Sets for sale in the UK

This is the first known written account of mahjong in any language other than Chinese. By 1910, there were written accounts in many languages, including French and Japanese. In 1920, Abercrombie & Fitch became the first-ever American brand to introduce the game. Slightly more than Jaques of London!

American mahjong, which was mainly played by Jewish women during the 1920s in America, grew from this craze. By the 1930s, many revisions of the rules developed that were substantially different from Babcock's classical version (including some that were considered fundamentals in other variants, such as the notion of a standard hand).

While mahjong was accepted by U.S. players of all ethnic backgrounds during the Babcock era, many consider the modern American version a Jewish game, as many American mahjong players are of Jewish descent. The NMJL was founded by Jewish players and is considered a Jewish organization. In addition, players usually use the American game as a family-friendly social activity, not as gambling.

In recent years, a second organization has formed, called The American Mah Jongg Association. They currently host tournaments all across North America, with their signature event being at the Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

British author Alan D. Millington revived the Chinese classical game of the 1920s with his book The Complete Book of Mah-jongg (1977). This handbook includes a formal rules set for the game. Many players in Western countries consider Millington's work authoritative.

Mahjong is not the first re-appearance of the Chinese game in the western world. It was also introduced by W. H. Wilkinson of H.B.M. Consular Service, and published in card form by Messrs. Goodall of London, prior to 1895, under the name of Khanhoo. This card game does not seem to have made any impression, the success of Mahjong resting in no small part upon the elegance of its mechanism as embodied in the domino-like pieces.

This a  guide to mah jongg online.

Buy Mah Jongg Sets HERE