Early in mahjong's history, industrious marketers sold international game enthusiasts on the mystique of this Chinese game. Granted, they oversold the 'Chinese mystique' angle - and not mildly! - but these tiles' allure is hard to overlook. Their story needn't be mystical, though; their facts are enough to merit appreciation. This article spells out mahjong tile facts: what they represent, what the Chinese writing on them translates to, and why a bird typically starts the bamboo suit.
| 🀄 Tile group | 🔢 Number of designs | 👨🏻🤝👨🏻 Number of copies | 🤔 Beginners should note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Characters | 9: #s 1 - 9 | Typically 4 | Tiles feature a number + 萬/万 (wàn). |
| Dots | 9: ranging from one dot to 9 dots | Typically 4 | the configuration/count of dots, rather like dominoes. |
| Bamboo | 9: ranging from two to nine bamboo sticks. | Typically 4 | A bird typically decorates the #1 bamboo tiles. |
| Winds | 4: Chinese characters for cardinal directions | Typically 4 | 東: (dōng) - west 南 (nán) - south 西 (xī) - east 北 (běi) - north |
| Dragons | 3 | Typically 4 | 中 (zhōng) - middle 發 (fā) - discovery and White |
| Flowers | 4 | 1 | Plants or flowers |
| Seasons | 4 | 1 | 春 (chūn) - Spring 夏 (xià) - Summer 秋 (qiū) - Autumn 冬 (dōng) - Winter |
Spelling Out Chinese Mahjong Tiles
You've likely seen mahjong tiles, perhaps in films like Crazy Rich Asians or series such as The Sopranos. They're chunky and colourful and feature different designs. It's those designs we examine, grouped as they are into 'families', like in this picture.
Mahjong Tiles by the Numbers
The variety of designs aside, mahjong sets are quite logical in their denominations and distribution. These groupings help you make sense of your new mahjong set.
Nine values in each suit (1 - 9).
Four copies of each numbered tile.
108 suited tiles, in total (9 x 3 x 4 = 108).
Mahjong sets may include Flower and Season tiles - 4 apiece, making the tile grand total for each Chinese mahjong set 144. Keep in mind that other styles of mahjong may count a different number of tiles1. For instance, American mahjong sets, styled as mah-jongg, feature 152 tiles. By contrast, Japanese-style mahjong allows for only 136; no Flower or Season tiles included.
Numbered Sets
As the breakdown above shows, numbered sets are the most plentiful tile groups, by far. They are the Dots, Characters, and Bamboo listed above. They go by many names, typically tied to the region the game is played.
Of these, Sticks and Strings; Wans and Myriads; and Coins hew the closest to traditional Chinese names. The card games mahjong derived from2 included that vocabulary which, in turn, based itself in everyday items of Chinese life.
Regardless of tradition or personal preference, it's best for you to learn the tile names your local mahjong club uses. You might consult your mahjong set's rulebook to learn which names to use for your tiles.
Honour Tiles
For curious minds, the first question this tile category provokes is, "Why are they called honour tiles?" Some sources report it's because those tiles are more closely related to traditional Chinese elements - dragons, in particular. Other sources emphasise these tiles' scoring and strategic benefits3, as some styles of mahjong accord winning hands made with honour tiles extra points.
Players cannot use them to build sequences.
They may use them to build pairs, quads, and triplets (eyes, kong, and pung, respectively).
Wind tiles typically feature Chinese characters for the four cardinal directions. Dragons typically feature a blank tile, the character for 'discovery' (發 - fā) in green, and the Chinese character for 'middle' (中 - zhōng) in red. The latter is most significant, as it is one of two characters in the name 'China' (中国 - zhōng guó).
Bonus Tiles
These eight tiles - four Seasons and four Flowers exist to boost strategic possibilities and enhance scoring in some styles of mahjong. How players may use them depends on the type of mahjong they play. In some styles, players earn extra points if the flower or season they draw matches their seat wind.
Seat / Wind
- 1 - East
- 2 - South
- 3 - West
- 4 - North
Flower tiles
- 1 - Plum
- 2 - Orchid
- 3 - Chrysanthemum
- 4 - Bamboo
Let's say you're sitting in the North position, and you draw Bamboo from the wall. If you're playing an Asian-style game, you must immediately declare the tile and draw another tile. As these tiles cannot be used to make a set, this rule does not harm your winning potential. However, come time to score the round, you'll earn extra points because your Flower tile matches your seat Wind.
Unfortunately, mahjong scoring rules vary. Much of it depends on the style you play and your mahjong club rules. This presents a general guideline; always check your rulebook to see which limits apply to your game.
What the Character Suit Tiles Mean
All 36 of these tiles typically feature two Chinese characters: a number and 萬 (wàn) or, alternatively, the simplified character for wàn (万). It means ten thousand (10,000), and it serves to give these tiles the traditional Chinese association with wàn noted above.
| 🔢 Number | 🀄 In Chinese | 🔠 Hanyu pinyin with tone |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 一 | yī |
| 2 | 二 | èr |
| 3 | 三 | sān |
| 4 | 四 | sì |
| 5 | 五 | wǔ |
| 6 | 六 | liù |
| 7 | 七 | qī |
| 8 | 八 | bā |
| 9 | 九 | jiǔ |
The numbers are straightforward, of course. Most mahjong sets prefer using these Chinese characters for tradition's sake, but some sets add an Arabic numeral to make identifying the tiles easier. Though it's simpler to identify them by their number alone, they actually represent (a multiple of) 10,000.
3 Char.
- traditional: 三萬
- simplified: 三万
8 Char.
- traditional: 八萬
- simplified: 八万
9 Char.
- traditional: 九萬
- simplified: 九万
7 Char.
- traditional: 七萬
- simplified: 七万
Some mahjong players prefer the traditional wàn character because it looks more authentic. Others would rather play with more easily identifiable tiles, favouring the simplified wàn design. And yet others rely on tiles with Arabic numbers on them. The choice is yours; mahjong makers create all those designs.
Bamboo and Dot Tiles
Where the Character tiles need numbers to identify them, players only need to count the number of Bamboo sticks and Dots on each tile to know their 'value'.
Bamboo Tiles
Despite not having any numbers on them, these tiles are also numbered - by the count of bamboo segments on them. For instance, a '2 Bamboo' will feature two segments, while an '8 bamboo' will have eight such segments arranged as a double-M.
This tile typically features an ornately drawn bird in honour of the game's Chinese name.
That name, máquè (麻雀), translates to 'sparrow', a nod to the sound the tiles make when shuffled.
Often, mahjong set makers will use colour to help distinguish the tiles. For instance, the '6' will feature blue and green sticks while the '9' will use red and green.
Dot Tiles
Did you know that archaeologists have discovered the world's oldest coin mint in Guanzhuang Province4? If bamboo and Chinese numbers strike you as quintessentially Chinese, that recent discovery proves that coins are equally so. In mahjong, they too represent ancient Chinese emblems.
In fact, 'coins' is the traditional name for this tile suit, though they go by many other names today, as listed above. These tiles don't need numbers; players simply match these tiles by their dots, as they would for dominoes.
The Meaning of the Wind Mahjong Symbols
Above, we touched on the Wind tiles briefly in the Honour tiles section. Wind tiles are those featuring these symbols.
| 💨 Wind | 🀄 Traditional Chinese | 😅 Simplified Chinese | 🔠 Pinyin |
|---|---|---|---|
| East | 東 | 东 | dōng |
| South | 南 | 南 | nán |
| West | 西 | 西 | xī |
| North | 北 | 北 | běi |
Note that East (東 - 东) is the only Wind to feature both a traditional and a simplified character. Said differently: the characters for three of the four Winds are traditional. Mahjong sets typically feature the traditional East character, as it is more in keeping with the Chinese aesthetic.
European societies tend to name cardinal directions starting from the north, going clockwise. Chinese culture follows the sun as it rises in the east and travels counter-clockwise.
Chinese mahjong follows the Asian custom for naming directions.
As Winds are honour tiles, they bear no numbers, nor can they form sequences. They may form quads and triplets, though.
Dragon Mahjong Tiles Explained
Dragon enthusiasts laying eyes on a mahjong set for the first time may be quite disappointed that these tiles do not depict dragons.
The American mahjong enthusiast, John Babcock, gave this set of tiles that name to enhance the game's marketability in the US.
This tile group's original name was 三元牌 (sānyuán pái), which means 'three fundamental tiles'5. That bit of knowledge clues us into why this tile group only contains three.
Red Dragon
- marked as 中
- pinyin: zhōng
- meaning: middle
White Dragon
- typically blank
- often just a frame
- may include 白 (bái)
- meaning: white
Green Dragon
- marked as 發 (trad.) / 发 (simple)
- pinyin: fā
- meaning depends on context
The character 發 / 发 may mean 'developing', 'prospering', and 'sending out', among others. This Chinese character relies totally on context for its definition. For example, the Chinese word for hair (头发 tóufa) includes fā, but it has nothing to do with developing or sending anything out.
Mahjong Symbols on Flower and Season Tiles
These groups are the last two to be added to the Chinese mahjong set, their purpose being to boost winning players' scores. Like all the tiles, these enjoy a connection to Chinese culture.
Four Flowers
- Also called the Four Gentlemen
- Typically plum blossom, orchid, chrysanthemum, bamboo
Four Seasons
- Spring (春 - chūn)
- Summer (夏 - xià)
- Autumn (秋 - qiū)
- Winter (冬 - dōng)
Not every mahjong set will include these tile groups; the Japanese mahjong set pictured above does not feature them. To know which tiles your set includes, be sure to follow the mahjong guidebook that came with it. It will explain the tiles, how to use them, and the rules that style of mahjong follows.
References
- I Love Mahjong. “What Tiles Are Used in American Mah Jongg (and How Many of Each Are There)? | I Love Mahj.” Ilovemahj.Com, 2026, ilovemahj.com/mah-jongg-question/641/what-tiles-are-used-in-american-mah-jongg-and-how-many-of-each-are-there. Accessed 26 Oct. 2026.
- Lee, Amber. “The Culture and Lore Around Chinese Mahjong.” CHOP SUEY CLUB, 9 May 2023, www.chopsueyclub.com/blogs/blog/culture-and-lore-around-chinese-mahjong. Accessed 26 Oct. 2026.
- Admin. Honors as Valuable Blanks. 1 Feb. 2021, www.zungjungmahjong.com/honors-as-valuable-blanks/. Accessed 26 Oct. 2026.
- Past, The. “World’s Oldest-Known Coin Mint Identified in China.” The Past, 6 Aug. 2021, the-past.com/news/worlds-oldest-known-coin-mint-identified-in-china/. Accessed 26 Oct. 2026.
- Board Games Stackexchange. “Why Is There No Black Dragon in Mahjong?” Board & Card Games Stack Exchange, 15 Nov. 2019, boardgames.stackexchange.com/questions/49259/why-is-there-no-black-dragon-in-mahjong. Accessed 26 Oct. 2026.
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