Where did the term "monkey!" come from when looking for dealer to bust? (nt)
I asked this a few years back. Apparently it comes from baccarat, where a face card counts zero, and these cards are called "monkey" for reasons unknown to me since I don't play the game. But the idea is that when someone shouts "monkey" they are not really asking for the dealer to bust, they are asking for the next card to be a "10" card which may well bust the dealer if he has a stiff of course.
This question was answered on June 15, 05 by Pigeon on Green Chip. Below I cut and pasted his reply. I'm kinda new here so I hope this isn't improper. His answer, by the way, coincided with what I had recently heard on TV during a Blackjack Tournament. Again, this is Pigeon:
The term "monkey" came from the baccarat tables. Originated quite some years ago when Indonesian Chinese gambled real big at that game, and these gamblers used to scream like crazy especially when they betted on Banker.
Those playing the Banker will shout in Cantonese (a Chinese dialect) "nothing" especially when the Player draws the third card when having eg 4 points agst the Bankers 5 pts. "Nothing" in Cantonese is pronounced something like "mo yair", and they will almost chant "mo-yair" "mo-yair" and when the Player's 3rd card is a picture, then obviously the Banker wins.
The Indonesian word for monkey is "monyet" which very closely resembles the pronounciation of "mo-yair", and it eventually evolved to the point that sometimes, when they did not want a picture card but got it, they started "cursing" the face card as a monkey, playing tricks to their money and chances.
In Asian casinos, they still scream "mo-yair", but in American casinos, I suppose that has evolved into something more understandable and pronounciable and probably more likeable and cute as "monkey".
Monkey is from the Baccarat tables. Oriental players would shout "Monarchy" when looking for a face. With their accent is sounds like monkey so it just came to be that.
In Asian casinos, they still scream "mo-yair", but in American casinos, I suppose that has evolved into something more understandable and pronounciable and probably more likeable and cute as "monkey". quoted by 49
In additon to the above, this slang ("Mah Kor Height") is an important part of Asian gamblers' vocabularies.
When "Mo-Yair" (no-substance or zero) comes true, the winners yell: "Ho-Yair" (Good stuff.)
But, when "Mo-Yair" fails, the losers yell: "Mah Kor Height" (Ur mother's @#$%^ !)..... (@#$%^=an obscene term for female genitals).
Dr Wong probably got yelled at by this slang when his father-in-law got really pissed at him for gambling without an "edge" circa 4 decades ago (before he knew how to cout cards). LOL.
