karnöffel

card game

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Last updated

July 16, 2026

Quick Summary

The term "karnöffel" refers to an early German card game that is considered a precursor to tarot games. While not a tarot game itself, it featured special powers attached to certain cards, which was a concept that influenced the development of tarot decks and their unique trump suit. The game of klaberjass, a trick-taking game of Dutch origin, is also mentioned in relation to card games.12

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card game
Origins
…earliest game known by name—karnöffel, played from 1428 in Germany—was such, though certain cards of a randomly selected suit possessed trick-taking powers of varying degrees of superiority. Trump suits as such were a European invention (see tarot game), as was the subsequent idea of bidding to select a trump…
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…earliest game known by name—karnöffel, played from 1428 in Germany—was such, though certain cards of a randomly selected suit possessed trick-taking powers of varying degrees of superiority. Trump suits as such were a European invention (see tarot game), as was the subsequent idea of bidding to select a trump…
Read More