Rules · 3 min read

Meet the 144 mahjong tiles

Mahjong is played by four people with 144 tiles. That sounds like a lot, but there are really only a few groups. Once you know the pattern, every tile is easy to read.

Three numbered suits

There are three suits of numbered tiles: Dots, Bamboo and Characters. Each runs from 1 to 9, and every tile has 4 copies. So 3 suits × 9 numbers × 4 = 108 tiles.

Dots

1 Dots
2 Dots
3 Dots
4 Dots
5 Dots
6 Dots
7 Dots
8 Dots
9 Dots

Bamboo

1 Bamboo
2 Bamboo
3 Bamboo
4 Bamboo
5 Bamboo
6 Bamboo
7 Bamboo
8 Bamboo
9 Bamboo

Characters

1 Characters
2 Characters
3 Characters
4 Characters
5 Characters
6 Characters
7 Characters
8 Characters
9 Characters

Numbered tiles can be used in every kind of set: Pong, Kong and Chow (three consecutive numbers of the same suit).

Winds

There are four winds: East, South, West and North. Each has 4 tiles, so 4 × 4 = 16 tiles.

East Wind
South Wind
West Wind
North Wind

Dragons

There are three dragons: Red Dragon, Green Dragon and White Dragon. Each has 4 tiles, so 3 × 4 = 12 tiles.

Red Dragon
Green Dragon
White Dragon

Winds and dragons have no numbers, so they cannot make a Chow. They can only be a Pong, a Kong or a pair.

Flowers and seasons

Finally there are 4 flowers and 4 seasons. There is only one of each, so 8 tiles in total. They are not used in your hand, but they add points. The article on flowers and seasons explains them in full.

The total

108 numbered tiles + 16 winds + 12 dragons + 8 flowers and seasons = 144 tiles.

Remember: the Beginner tile style shows a small label in the corner of each tile: the number for Dots, Bamboo and Characters; T, S, B, U for the winds (from their Bahasa names Timur, Selatan, Barat, Utara); M, H, P for the dragons (Merah, Hijau, Putih). These labels help you recognise tiles quickly while you are learning.