PRESENTATION
'Trictrac' is a very old game, which probably originated in France or in Italy, and whose appearance was attested as far back as the beginning of the XVIth century. It is played by two players using an apparatus similar to that used at backgammon and 'jacquet' but with a few additional adjustments.
The purpose of this reasoned dictionary of 'trictrac' is to provide present as well as future players with the necessary notions and clues that will enable them to play without having to refer to miscellaneous works either out of print for ages (we can now find some of the books in facsimile or on the Internet : Gallica or GoogleBooks) or, if more recent, too succinct and perhaps even partly erroneous. Conserving this way a cultural, linguistic and game-playing heritage was also a major concern when producing this work.
The dictionary was devised with quite an exhaustive view : it encompasses all the rules, all the terms, as well as some phrases, that were in use in relation to the game way back in the XVIIth century and up to the beginning of the XIXth century, when it was still almost at the height of its fame.
Eclecticism did not however prevail : the most elaborate rules and the terms used in the XIXth century are rigorously put forward and the earlier alternatives are presented as such. There are also a couple of minor recent changes, which are actually very few, and equally mentioned as such ; the author is a long-time 'trictrac' player indeed and his approach is first and foremost that of a player.
A reader totally unacquainted with the game will nevertheless form an opinion if he follows the initiatory course or the commented game.
