Tarabish, also known by its slang term Bish, is a Canadian trick-taking card game of complex rules derived from Belote, a game of the Jass family. The name is pronounced "tar-bish", despite the spelling. It is played primarily by the people of Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, in Canada, where, according to one source, it was brought in 1901 by a Lebanese immigrant George Shebib. Object The game is over when one or both teams accumulate 500 points or more. Points are counted at the end of each hand and both teams always count their points. The team with the most points at the end of the game wins. The deck A Tarabish deck consists of a normal English pattern deck of playing cards with the 2 through 5 of each suit removed. In preparation for the hand the dealer shuffles the cards in the usual manner. When finished the person to the right of the dealer cuts the cards. The cutter must leave at least four cards in each portion of the deck. Once the cards have been cut, no further shuffling is allowed. Bespoke Tarabish packs were produced by Ocean of Sydney, Nova Scotia in the 1970s. These contained 40 cards (6–A in each suit) together with a rules leaflet. The 36 Tarabish cards are dealt in groups of three beginning with eldest hand (the player to the left of the dealer) and proceeding clockwise until all the cards are dealt. The four players look at their first six cards; the last three, called the kitty, remain face down until after the auction is over and a trump suit has been chosen. Cards value In the plain suits, cards rank and score in the standard Ace-Ten order; in the trump suit the Jack and Nine are promoted above the Ace to become the highest two cards with correspondingly higher card point values. The bid There is an auction to determine the trump suit for the hand. Eldest hand opens the bidding to choose the trump suit. If eldest passes, the decision passes to the next person and so on. In the most popular variation, if the bid reaches the dealer, the dealer is forced to choose a trump suit. The less popular variation allows the dealer to pass in which case the hand is complete and the deal passes to the next player. The team that 'goes' must accumulate