Rummikub is similar to several central European card games which are played with two decks of playing cards, including Machiavelli and Vatikan. Ephraim Hertzano invented the tile game Rummikub in the 1940s when card-playing was outlawed under the Communist regime. After World War II, Hertzano immigrated to British Mandate of Palestine (now Israel) and developed the first sets with his family. Over the years, the Hertzano family licensed it to other countries and Rummikub became Israel's best-selling export game.
