The connection to horses likely stems from the term's cultural or historical association with horse racing, where placement (first, second, third, etc.) is critical, much like in mahjong's ranking-based scoring. In a Reddit discussion, a user notes that "uma" meaning "horse" is referenced in the context of Japanese mahjong's final position payments, drawing a parallel to the "Kyung-Ma" (horse race) in modern Chinese and Korean mahjong variants, where chips are used to track wins in a race-like system. This suggests the term "uma" may evoke the idea of a competitive race, aligning with the game's emphasis on placement.

However, the exact origin of why "uma" (horse) is used in mahjong scoring is not explicitly detailed in the sources, and it may be more of a linguistic or metaphorical carryover rather than a direct reference to horses in the game itself. No mahjong tiles or mechanics directly involve horses, unlike the sparrow (麻雀, máquè) referenced in the game's name, which relates to the sound of tiles clacking

I'm the most lucky player in /mjg/.

>>530532361
I was going to attack you in an even more aggressive and unsavory way for having a different opinion, but then I remembered I don't actually care about this made up argument and I have nothing against you.