The Colorful History of Sudoku

People today tend to marvel at the accomplishments of ancient civilizations, such as demonstrated by the pyramids of Egypt. Those ancient people had such creativity and intelligence, and they did not have TV or radio to entertain themselves. Instead, they relied upon their minds for entertainment, creativity, and solutions to problems.

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", though the word Sudoku is actually an abbreviation of the original Japanese name. 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 mental processes. There are simple 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.

Only after arriving in Japan did the name "Sudoku" get applied to the game, which Garns had named "Number Place." Later, the name was copyrighted by a Japanese company, though the puzzle itself was launched in Britain and then around the world.

Originally, players always found newspapers or puzzle magazines for the source of new games, but in 1989 a computer version of Sudoku was introduced. Some people have even created a three dimensional version based on Rubik's Cube.

Sudoku reached huge global popularity by 1997, and a Hong Kong resident named Wayne Gould created a computer program to create the game, which can spit out thousands of variations in short time. He later developed a business selling the puzzles around the world.

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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Terence Uniacke contributes to a variety of Internet magazines, on hobby shop online and amusement recreation themes.
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