The History of Roulette

The word "roulette" is of French origin and means "little wheel". "Roue" means wheel and "Roulette" is simply its diminuitive. Hence, naturally, the first game of roulette was played in France. The name of the original inventor is debatable, so we won't get into that. One thing is clear though, the first roulette wheel that looks like the one used today, with alternating colors, was played around 1796 in Paris.