Modern generations marvel at the intelligence and creativity displayed by
ancient civilizations. The great pyramids of ancient Egypt are the perfect
example of incredible design and unmitigated human accomplishment. In
ancient times, people were dependant on their minds to create, solve and
entertain. Today, most people turn their minds off and turn on the TV or
radio when it's time to be entertained.
Every once in a while, when
media gets dull and our minds need sharpening, people will turn to riddles
and brain twisters. It's how we explore our thought processes, and how we
develop our creativity. Without puzzles and riddles, our brains become
stagnant. Humans innately love and need activities that twist the mind and
form new ideas.
Some of our most enduring games and puzzles were
based on the ideas of ancient peoples, with changes and innovations
applied along the way. Beautiful in its simplicity yet intoxicatingly
challenging, Sudoku is one of the games that may well have existed since
the ancient times. The history of Sudoku is as interesting as the puzzle
itself.
The word "Sudoku" is another name for "number place".
Derived from the Japanese language, "Sudoku" refers to a logic-based
placement. A type of puzzle game, in other words. The first Sudoku puzzle
was published in 1979, in a US magazine. The puzzle traveled to Japan,
where it exploded with popularity. If translated into English phrases, the
name "Sudoku" would actually be "the digits must remain single". The name
has gathered various manners of pronunciation in different countries, but
the basic standards of the game have not been altered.
The puzzle
enhances your critical thinking. It forces you to utilize the arithmetic
relationship between numbers that are not relevant with each other. There
are also basic rules to follow when solving a Sudoku puzzle.
Retired
architect and freelance puzzle constructor Howard Garns created Sudoku
while in his late 70s. Mr. Garns created puzzles for a living, so he knew
the tricks to creating a great puzzle. The idea for Sudoku was derived
from that of Euler's "Latin Square" puzzle. Howard Garns took the ancient
game and altered it by adding a "third dimension". In the Sudoku version,
Garns also provided the player with a partially completed grid that
required the solver to complete the rest of the blank grids.
The
history of Sudoku took another twist in Japan. After Howard Garns
introduced the first Sudoku puzzle in a U. S. magazine, a person named
Nikoli in Japan picked it up. While Mr. Garns had his own English name for
the puzzle, Nikoli gave it the Japanese name Sudoku.
Originally,
Sudoku was played manually in Japanese and American publications. In 1989,
Loadstar Publishing introduced a computerized version, followed by another
version by Apple. Sudoku had been fashioned partly with attributes from
another popular 1980's puzzle, the Rubik's Cube.
In the year 1997,
the popularity of Sudoku in the media had reached overwhelming heights. A
Hong Kong judge named Wayne Gould became so engulfed by the game, he
developed his own computerized version of Sudoku.
Nationwide,
newspapers would print the puzzles and sell out quickly. World media
acknowledged Sudoku as the "fastest growing puzzle in the world". By 2005,
Sudoku was at the peak of its popularity.
The history of Sudoku is
as interesting as the puzzle itself, with ancient roots, modern influences
and an ocean crossing to reach its full popularity. Fans of Sudoku should
toast Mr. Howard Garns for bringing endless hours of puzzling pleasure to
their lives.
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