Ouija is a flat, heart-shaped board marked with the letters of the alphabet, the numbers 0 to 9, the words “yes” and “no”, and various other symbols. It is used in sances to communicate with the spirits of the dead.
The word “Ouija” is said to be derived from the French and German words for “yes” (“oui” and “ja”), although this etymology has been disputed. The Ouija board was invented in 1890 by Elijah Bond, a mortician from Baltimore, Maryland. Bond claimed that the board was a tool for communicating with the spirits of the dead, and it quickly became popular as a parlor game.
