What are the Origins of Tarot?

Tarot, originally a card game in renaissance Italy, has become a mystified and stigmatized cultural phenomenon. Today, tarot is associated with witchcraft and fortune-telling, scaring many people off the practice because they believe it to be fake or evil. However, tarot is not and does not pretend to be a scary magical look into the future, it is a tool for self divination and meditation, an art form, and a card game. Tarot decks consist of 78 cards, all using archetypes, symbols, and imagery to convey human emotions, challenges, and circumstances. The individual is supposed to interpret these cards and relate them to their own life as a sort of meditation and reflection rather than to predict the future.

Tarot is important for the cards' honest reflections and portrayals of human emotions and adversities that have allowed countless people over the past 6 centuries to individually connect with the practice, adopt and transform it to their individual as well as cultural interpretation. This has led Tarot to become a time capsule of sentiments felt in an array of cultures and time periods.

I used to associate Tarot with witchcraft and though that it was fake but a fun thing to indulge in. When I got my Tarot deck I was amazed at how accurate every reading was and I quickly realized that it isn't any sort of magic, but a simple tool for self reflection, and that every card can apply to any aspect of anyone's life because of how simple they are, yet using tarot readings as a meditation is extremely effective. I still never knew where tarot cards came from but I just assumed it was some ancient practice. I have always been fascinated with the artwork of tarot decks and how various artists convey the cards to fit their culture and time, and one day researching a deck I saw on a window display and though I might want to buy, I came across an article that mentioned tarot's origin in 15th century Italy. I was really shocked at how recent of an invention tarot was, ad that it came from Europe, so I wanted to research where Tarot came from and how it became the mystical oracle it's known as today.

Looking at the geographic origins of tarot cards and how they evolved in significance and artwork as they dissolved worldwide lets us see how different cultural climates of various places and eras adopt tarot and interpret it to fit their culture, in turn changing the meaning of tarot.

First I wanted to look at important events, eras, and groups that changed the cultural significance of tarot, as well as myths and theories of its origin. Then I researched important and unique tarot decks to showcase how this cultural significance influences the deck itself.

In my research, I found that oftentimes, Tarot surged in popularity during times of adversity, particularly as a tool for divination, perhaps as a sort of comfort and way to prepare oneself for the future or as a guide through the present adversities. They reached their peak in popularity in starving France prior to the French revolution and in post-revolution France, devastated by the violence of the revolution. They gained popularity in England at the turn of the 20th century, an uncertain time when the Church's influence was fading and many were left feeling without a purpose and hopeless for the coming century. Tarot became popular in America after WWI, also a time where many abandoned their religious faith, as well as the Spanish flu. Now, many tarot decks depict depressing sentiments over industrialism (Deviant Moon Tarot), and distrust in the government (Hexon 2.0 Tarot). And Tarot card sales have now surged during the COVID-19 pandemic.

I touched on the two main controversies I could find in each of my maps above. The first one is Tarot and the Catholic Church. Another prominent controversy is the exclusion of Pamela Coleman Smith's, artist of the "Rider-Waite," deck, exclusion from the deck's title, as well as lack of profit from her work on the iconic deck. Many now refer to the deck as the Smith-Waite deck for this reason.

In a recent surge in popularity of Wicca ("witchcraft") customs in pop culture, things like crystals, incense, and Tarot cards have become very profitable. Companies and publishers have taken this opportunity to publish many decks with pop culture themes and figures. While Tarot does not have sacred beginnings, it's still an important practice, and hopefully, we won't see it become a complete fad with recent oversaturation. I also hope Tarotis again seen as more of an art form the way it was in the later 20th century, rather than something to capitalize on.

As Tarot has changed to adapt to our changing and progressing society, many decks have been created to include those who were maybe left out or overlooked in "traditional decks," like people of colour or from non-European cultures. I think this is great and hope to see more Tarot decks that represent more cultures and peoples.

Going into this project with little to no knowledge of where Tarot came from, I learned a lot. I was initially shocked by the fact that Tarot was only invented halfway through the second millenium, in Italy, but I learned so much more than that, like how cultural circumstances affect individuals' outlook on life and how that is reflected in their interpretation of Tarot's depictions of human emotion, and I learned about various movements that changed tarot as well as myths of its origin.

I would definitely say "connection" has been the most influential to the diffusion of Tarot. The cards' complex yet simple and honest portrayals of universal human emotions allow any individual from any culture to connect to the cards, making them universal and very adaptable, allowing them to diffuse worldwide.

I can make the claim that Tarot originated in 15th century Italy as a card game, but it has evolved into a universal revelation tool because of its honest, adaptable nature.