Ma-Chiang
/ˈmɑː.tʃæŋ/noun
An alternative English spelling of mahjong, the Chinese tile game played by four people.
Did you know?The spelling Ma-Chiang reflects early attempts to represent a Chinese pronunciation in older romanization systems; modern English generally uses mahjong or mah-jongg.
Etymological Timeline
Late Imperial China
Chinese
麻將
“The Chinese name for the tile game, commonly pronounced májiàng in Mandarin and máh-jeung in Cantonese.”
19th–Early 20th Century
Cantonese
麻雀 / 麻將
“Regional forms associated with the game; the exact historical development of the name is debated, and popular explanations involving “sparrows” are not certain.”
Early 20th Century
English
mah-jong
“An early English rendering of the Chinese game name.”
Early 20th Century
English
ma-chiang
“A variant spelling used in English-language writing for mahjong.”
Modern English
English
mahjong
“The standard modern English spelling for the four-player tile game.”