Mahjong (Chinese: 麻將; pinyin: má jiàng) is a game for four players that originated in China. One of the myths of the origin of mahjong suggests that Confucious, the great Chinese philosopher, developed the game in about 500 BC. This assertion is likely to be apocryphal. According to this myth, the appearance of the game in the various Chinese states coincided with Confucius travels at the time he was teaching his new doctrines. The three dragon (cardinal) tiles also agree with the three cardinal virtues bequeathed by Confucius. Hóng Zhōng 红中, red middle), Fā Cái (发财 , prosperity), and Bái Ban (白板 , white board) represent benevolence, sincerity, and filial piety, respectively.The myth also claims that Confucius was fond of birds, which would explain the name "mahjong" (maque 麻雀 = sparrow). However, there is no evidence of mahjongs existence before the Taiping he 19th century, which eliminates Confucius as a likely inventor.