Playing Cards Symbols: Names, Meanings, and Suit Order

Playing cards have been around for a long time now. However, while most people know about playing card symbols like clubs, diamonds, hearts, and spades, they don’t know what these symbols stand for. 

But first, we’ll talk a little about how playing cards came to be in the first place.  

Brief History of Playing Cards

Traditionally, these cards were first mentioned in 10th-century Chinese literature. However, there are no definitive records of what people used these cards for. 

These cards first arrived in the European continent in the 1300s when Egyptian merchants imported them from the Kingdom of Mamluk. Originally, these playing cards were handpainted, making them luxury commodities. 

In fact, as per interesting fact, King Charles the Sixth of France had a sum of 56 sols parisiens of French currency paid to Jacquemin Gringonneur. 

However, the cost of card production was reduced early on in the 15th century, after Germans introduced woodblock printing, while the French introduced stencils, which consisted of 4 playing card symbols that all of us know today:

• Trèfle (Clubs)
• Carreau (Diamonds)
• Coeur (Hearts)
• Pique (Spades)

Now, with the reduction in the prices of cards, people from all social classes could afford these cards, which led to their increased popularity. This is how many different games like the Indian rummy card game, gin rummy, Hanabi, Love Letters, etc. developed over time.

The different varieties of games depended on factors like:

• Mentality
• Personality 
• Skill level (unskilled and skilled)
• Intellect 
• Emotional balance

Furthermore, the art of playing cards appealed more to women, which is why this art also became the basis for forming intimate bonds. This is why associations or authorities like the Church didn’t agree with this. 

However, some empires also sought to profit from this. For instance, the Place of Versailles became a card-playing casino in the 17th century. Other empires or kingdoms included card-making as a part of their monopoly and made forging these cards a crime. 

In modern times, making cards has remained a competitive market.

Overview of Playing Card Decks

Playing cards came (and still do) in 52 card decks because they stand for 52 weeks in a year. Furthermore:

• 12 “Face” cards (4 each of Kings, Queens, and Jacks) represent the 12 months in a year
• 13 cards in each deck stand for the 13 moon cycles in a year
• 4 sets or “suits” represent the 4 seasons
• All the card values of the “Number” cards, total 365, indicating the number of days in a year
• The “red” colour stands for day, while the “black” colour stands for night. 

Additionally, the “Face” cards stood for the different classes in society during medieval times,  that is, Kings and Queens stood for nobility, while Jacks indicated the common population. 

The different “Symbol” cards have their own meanings too. For instance:

• Diamonds refer to upper-class wealth 
• Clubs stand for agricultural growth cycles 
• Hearts refer to emotional health and well-being 
• Spades stand for war and conflict, and the bravery shown during the same. 

Now, playing cards are not only used for games. They were also used for the practice of tarot or divination, after Jean-Baptise Alliette, a French occultist, popularized the same. 

Read for more info: Learn How the Rummy Card Deck Works | A23 Games 

The Four Suits of Playing Cards 

As mentioned previously, different symbols have different associations. Let’s now talk about them in greater detail below. 

Hearts

These symbols stand for love, affection and relationships between people. They also symbolize that not every card game can be won with logic. Sometimes, you have to go with your intuition as well. 

Furthermore, it also stands for spring, which symbolizes renewal, and freshness. Interestingly, the heart card is also associated with the element of fire. 

In simple terms, this card symbol resonates with people who wear their hearts on their sleeves and aren’t afraid to take chances when it matters. 

Additionally, this symbol or card was associated with the: 

• King of France, Charlemagne.
• Queen Heart, from Alice in the Wonderland
• La Hire

Diamonds

These playing card symbols indicate upper-class wealth. Furthermore, they also stand for the autumn season, which signifies harvesting the rewards of the previous months along with advancing a person’s career. 

The diamond symbol also stands for the element of air, symbolizing the ability to adapt to situations and intellectual freedom. Additionally, they also represent the values of stability, ethical integrity and financial well-being.

In other words, this card symbol will resonate with people who prefer stability or are working towards monetary stability. 

The Diamonds card was also associated with the: 

• Roman emperor Augustus Caesar. 
• Queen Rachel
• Hector

Clubs

This symbol stands for the earth element and represents the various agricultural cycles that the earth goes through. It essentially refers to the capacity of people to be creative, innovative and inspirational.

It stands for the summer season, which brings the promise of growth, hope and positivity. So, these resonate with people who are grateful for life’s gifts, practice growing something, and are also ambitious.

This card was associated with the: 

• Macedonian King, Alexander. 
• Queen Argine
• Lancelot

Spades

Lastly, these card symbols represent war and conflict, along with the element of water and the winter season. 

These multiple connotations indicate that the person who holds these cards is either set to transform their life through some conflict or can adapt to situations. 

This symbol also represents the onset of acceptance and grace, after the conflict has passed, representing a decrease in the pace of life. It also stands for patriotic bravery.

So, these playing card symbols resonate best with people who embody all these qualities. Additionally, this card was associated with the: 

• King of Israel, David 
• Greek goddess Pallas Athena
• Ogier the Dane

The Face Cards: King, Queen, and Jack

Let’s now talk about the face cards below.

The King

The King represented the highest male position held by a man in medieval times and also stood for authority.  Some other associations of the King card indicated royalty, power and leadership. So, this card represents the capacity to make important decisions. 

The Queen

Just like the King, this playing card symbol represented the highest female position held by a man in medieval times and also stood for royal authority and power. This card also indicated queenly grace and beauty, along with strategic importance. 

The Jack

This card represented a warrior and a person associated with the qualities of agility and youth. It also stands for a mischievous nature, so you should be careful when you come across this in your playing card symbol deck.

Read for more info: How to use Kings and Queens in Rummy? | A23 

Suit Order and Its Significance 

Normally, the order that people follow for the suits is Spades, Hearts, Diamonds and Clubs. That’s because: 

• Spades or war leads to heightened emotions or hearts
• A country that wins the war wins Diamonds or wealth
• The stability leads to agricultural growth or Clubs

Now, the order of the suits determines the winning hand that players end up with. For example, in poker, a royal flush is determined by the following order of cards:

• Ace
• King
• Queen
• Jack, and so on.

Why Suit Order Matters in Card Games

Different games have their unique hierarchies. For instance, in an Indian rummy game the hierarchy of the cards is as follows:

• Ace
• Jack
• Queen
• King
• Cards from 2 to 10
• Joker

These hierarchies are defined by the rules of the game and dictate gameplay along with indications of how to win it. 

This is why these suits with their respective playing card symbols determine the players’ strategy as well, since the layers have to stack the appropriate cards together to win. 

So, as you can see, the different symbols on each card have different meanings and can influence the game by determining gameplay and tactics. Do read out posts thoroughly for a better understanding.