Chess notation
Encyclopedia
Chess notation is the term for several systems that have developed to record either the moves made during a game of chess
or the position of the pieces on a chess board. The earliest systems of notation used lengthy narratives to describe each move; these gradually evolved into terser systems of notation. Currently algebraic chess notation
is the accepted standard, and is widely used. Algebraic notation has a few variations. Descriptive chess notation
was used in English and Spanish-language literature until the late 20th century, but is now obsolete. There are some special systems for international correspondence chess
. PGN
is used when working with computer chess programs. Systems also exist for transmission using Morse code
over telegraph or radio.
In recognized competitions all players are required to record all the moves of both players in order to: resolve disputes about what the position should now be, whether a player has made an illegal move, etc.; keep an accurate count of the moves if, as in most serious competition, there is a time limit rule which requires each player to complete a specified number of moves in a specified time. All chess coaches strongly recommend the recording of one's games so that one can look for improvements in one's play. The algebraic and descriptive notations are also used in books about chess.
Here is an example of the same moves in some of the notations which may be used by humans:
Annotators commenting on a game frequently use question marks and exclamation marks to label a move as bad or praise the move as a good one (see punctuation (chess)
).
. The Uedemann Code and Gringmuth Notation worked by using a two-letter label for each square and transmitting four letters - two letters for the origin square followed by two letters for the destination square. Castling is shown as a king move. Squares are designated from White's side of the board, files from left to right and ranks from nearest to farthest. The Rutherford Code first converted the move into a number and then converted the move number into a composite Latin word. It could also transmit moves of two games at the same time.
(1854–1912). The method was never actually used, mainly because a transposition of letters can result in a valid but incorrect move. Many sources incorrectly use this name for the Gringmuth Code.
The files are labeled "A", "E", "I", "O", "O", "I", "E", and "A". The ranks are labeled "B", "D", "F", "G", "H", "K", "L", and "P". A square on the queenside is designated by its file letter and then its rank letter. A square on the kingside is designated by its rank letter then its file letter.
s in telegrams, but they did allow Latin words. This method also allowed moves for two games to be transmitted at the same time. In this method, the legal moves in the position were counted using a system until the move being made was reached. This was done for both games. The move number of the first game was multiplied by 60 and added to the move number of the second game. Leading zeros were added as necessary to give a four-digit number. The first two digits would be 00 through 39, which corresponded to a table of 40 Latin roots. The third digit corresponded to a list of 10 Latin prefixes and the last digit corresponded to a list of 10 Latin suffixes. The resulting word was transmitted.
After rules were changed so that ciphers were allowed in telegrams, this system was replaced by the Gringmuth Notation.
There is also a notation for recording positions in text format, called the Forsyth–Edwards Notation (FEN). This is useful for adjourning a game to resume later or for conveying chess problem positions without a diagram. A position can also be recorded by listing the pieces and the square upon which they reside, e.g. White: Ke1, Rd3, etc.
The notation for chess moves evolved slowly, as these examples show. The last is in algebraic chess notation
, the others show the evolution of descriptive chess notation
and use spelling and notation of the period.
A text from Shakespeare's time uses complete sentences to describe moves, for example, "Then the black king for his second draught brings forth his queene, and placest her in the third house, in front of his bishop's pawne" - which we would now write as 2 ... Qf6. The great 18th-century player Philidor
used an almost equally verbose approach in his influential book "Analyse du jeu des Échecs", for example, "The king's bishop, at his queen bishop's fourth square."
Rather surprisingly, algebraic chess notation
was used by Philipp Stamma (c. 1705-1755) in an almost fully developed form before the now obsolete descriptive chess notation
evolved. The main difference between Stamma's system and the modern system is that Stamma used "p" for pawn moves and the original file of the piece ("a" through "h") instead of the initial letter of the piece.
But Philidor defeated Stamma in a match, so his writings had more influence and the descriptive system based on his approach was dominant for a long time. Algebraic notation became dominant in the 20th century, although it did not become popular in the English-speaking countries until the 1970s.
Chess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
or the position of the pieces on a chess board. The earliest systems of notation used lengthy narratives to describe each move; these gradually evolved into terser systems of notation. Currently algebraic chess notation
Algebraic chess notation
Algebraic notation is a method for recording and describing the moves in a game of chess. It is now standard among all chess organizations and most books, magazines, and newspapers...
is the accepted standard, and is widely used. Algebraic notation has a few variations. Descriptive chess notation
Descriptive chess notation
Descriptive notation is a notation for recording chess games, and at one time was the most popular notation in English-speaking and Spanish-speaking countries , . It was used in Europe until it was superseded by abbreviated algebraic notation, which was introduced by Philipp Stamma in 1737...
was used in English and Spanish-language literature until the late 20th century, but is now obsolete. There are some special systems for international correspondence chess
Correspondence chess
Correspondence chess is chess played by various forms of long-distance correspondence, usually through a correspondence chess server, through email or by the postal system; less common methods which have been employed include fax and homing pigeon...
. PGN
Portable Game Notation
Portable Game Notation is a computer-processible format for recording chess games ; many chess programs recognize this extremely popular format due to its being stored in plain text.-History:...
is used when working with computer chess programs. Systems also exist for transmission using Morse code
Morse code
Morse code is a method of transmitting textual information as a series of on-off tones, lights, or clicks that can be directly understood by a skilled listener or observer without special equipment...
over telegraph or radio.
Recording the moves
Some move-recording notations are designed mainly for use by human players and others for use by computers.Move notations for humans
- Algebraic chess notationAlgebraic chess notationAlgebraic notation is a method for recording and describing the moves in a game of chess. It is now standard among all chess organizations and most books, magazines, and newspapers...
is more compact than descriptive chess notationDescriptive chess notationDescriptive notation is a notation for recording chess games, and at one time was the most popular notation in English-speaking and Spanish-speaking countries , . It was used in Europe until it was superseded by abbreviated algebraic notation, which was introduced by Philipp Stamma in 1737...
, and is the most widely used method for recording the moves of a game of chess. It has been in use in some regions since the early 19th century, and is less prone to error than the English descriptive system. Algebraic notation is the official notation of FIDE which must be used in all recognized international competition involving human players. The U.S. Chess Federation prefers the use of algebraic notation but still permits descriptive notation. - Standard Algebraic Notation (SAN) is the notation standardized by FIDE. It omits the starting file and rank of the pieceChess pieceChess pieces or chessmen are the pieces deployed on a chessboard to play the game of chess. The pieces vary in abilities, giving them different values in the game...
, unless it is necessary to disambiguate the move. - Figurine Algebraic Notation (FAN) is a widely-used variation of Standard Algebraic Notation which replaces the letter that stands for a piece by its symbolChess symbols in UnicodeChess symbols are part of Unicode.Instead of using images, one can represent chess pieces by symbols that are defined in the Unicode character set. This makes it possible to:...
, e.g., instead of Nc6 or instead of Rxg4. Pawns are omitted as in standard algebraic notation. This enables the moves to be read independent of language. In order to display or print these symbols, one has to have one or more fontFontIn typography, a font is traditionally defined as a quantity of sorts composing a complete character set of a single size and style of a particular typeface...
s with good UnicodeUnicodeUnicode is a computing industry standard for the consistent encoding, representation and handling of text expressed in most of the world's writing systems...
support installed on the computer, and the document (Web page, word processor document, etc.) must use one of these fonts. For more information see Chess symbols in UnicodeChess symbols in UnicodeChess symbols are part of Unicode.Instead of using images, one can represent chess pieces by symbols that are defined in the Unicode character set. This makes it possible to:...
. - Long Algebraic Notation (LAN) includes the starting file and rank of the piece, followed by a dash.
- Minimal Algebraic Notation (MAN) is similar to SAN but omits the capture indicator ("x"). It was used by Chess Informant.
- Reversible Algebraic Notation (RAN) is based on LAN, but adds an additional letter for the piece that was captured, if any. The move can be reversed by moving the piece to its original square, and restoring the captured piece. For example, Rd2xBd6.
- Concise Reversible Algebraic Notation (CRAN) is like RAN, but omits the file or rank if it is not needed to disambiguate the move. For example, Rd2:B6. This notation is recommended in Play Stronger Chess by Examining Chess 960: Usable Strategies for Fischer Random Chess Discovered.
- Figurine Concise Reversible Algebraic Notation (FCRAN) is a form of CRAN with non-Staunton figurines, used by Gene Milener during Chess960 tournaments.
- Descriptive chess notationDescriptive chess notationDescriptive notation is a notation for recording chess games, and at one time was the most popular notation in English-speaking and Spanish-speaking countries , . It was used in Europe until it was superseded by abbreviated algebraic notation, which was introduced by Philipp Stamma in 1737...
, English notation or English descriptive notation. Until the 1970s, at least in English-speaking countries, chess games were recorded and published using this notation. This is still used by a dwindling number of mainly older players, and by those who read old books (some of which are still important). - ICCF numeric notationICCF numeric notationICCF numeric notation is the official chess game notation for all International Correspondence Chess Federation games. This is because in international correspondence chess the use of algebraic notation may cause confusion, since different languages have different names for the pieces.In brief,...
. In international correspondence chess the use of algebraic notation may cause confusion, since different languages have different names for the pieces. The standard for transmitting moves in this form of chess is ICCF numeric notation. - Smith Notation is a straight-forward chess notation designed to be reversible and represent any move without ambiguity. The notation encodes the from square, to square, and what piece was captured, if any.
- Coordinate notation is similar to algebraic notation except that no abbreviation or symbol is used to show which piece is moving. It can almost do this without ambiguity because it always includes the square from which the piece moves as well as its destination, but promotions must be disambiguated by including the promoted piece type, such as in parentheses. It has proved hard for humans to write and read, but is used internally by some chess-related computer software.
Here is an example of the same moves in some of the notations which may be used by humans:
| # | Algebraic | Figurine Algebraic | Long Algebraic | Reversible Algebraic | Concise Reversible | Smith | Descriptive | Coordinate | ICCF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | e4 e5 | e4 e5 | e2-e4 e7-e5 | e2-e4 e7-e5 | e24 e75 | e2e4 e7e5 | P-K4 P-K4 | E2-E4 E7-E5 | 5254 5755 |
| 2. | Nf3 Nc6 | ♘f3 ♞c6 | Ng1-f3 Nb8-c6 | Ng1-f3 Nb8-c6 | Ng1f3 Nb8c6 | g1f3 b8c6 | N-KB3 N-QB3 | G1-F3 B8-C6 | 7163 2836 |
| 3. | Bb5 a6 | ♗b5 a6 | Bf1-b5 a7-a6 | Bf1-b5 a7-a6 | Bf1b5 a76 | f1b5 a7a6 | B-N5 P-QR3 | F1-B5 A7-A6 | 6125 1716 |
| 4. | Bxc6 dxc6 | ♗xc6 dxc6 | Bb5xc6 d7xc6 | Bb5xNc6 d7xBc6 | Bb5:Nc6 d7:Bc6 | b5c6n d7c6b | BxN QPxB | B5-C6 D7-C6 | 2536 4736 |
| 5. | d3 Bb4+ | d3 ♝b4+ | d2-d3 Bf8-b4+ | d2-d3 Bf8-b4+ | d23 Bf8b4+ | d2d3 f8b4 | P-Q3 B-N5ch | D2-D3 F8-B4 | 4243 6824 |
| 6. | Nc3 Nf6 | ♘c3 ♞f6 | Nb1-c3 Ng8-f6 | Nb1-c3 Ng8-f6 | Nb1c3 Ng8f6 | b1c3 g8f6 | N-B3 N-B3 | B1-C3 G8-F6 | 2133 7866 |
| 7. | O-O Bxc3 | O-O ♝xc3 | O-O Bb4xc3 | O-O Bb4xNc3 | O-O Bb4:Nc3 | e1g1c b4c3n | O-O BxN | E1-G1 B4-C3 | 5171 2433 |
Annotators commenting on a game frequently use question marks and exclamation marks to label a move as bad or praise the move as a good one (see punctuation (chess)
Punctuation (chess)
When annotating chess games, commentators frequently use question marks and exclamation points to denote a move as bad or good. The symbols normally used are "??", "?", "?!", "!?", "!", and "!!". The corresponding symbol is juxtaposed in the text immediately after the move When annotating chess...
).
Move notations for computers
The following are commonly used for chess-related computer systems (in addition to Coordinate and Smith notation, which are described above):- Portable Game NotationPortable Game NotationPortable Game Notation is a computer-processible format for recording chess games ; many chess programs recognize this extremely popular format due to its being stored in plain text.-History:...
(PGN). This is the most common of several notations that have emerged based upon algebraic chess notation, for recording chess games in a format suitable for computer processing. - Steno-Chess. This is another format suitable for computer processing. It sacrifices the ability to play through games (by a human) for conciseness, which minimises the number of characters required to store a game.
- Forsyth–Edwards Notation (FEN). A single line format which gives the current positions of pieces on a board, to enable generation of a board in something other than the initial array of pieces. It also contains other information such as castling rights, move number, and color on move. It is incorporated into the PGN standard as a Tag Pair in conjunction with the SetUp tag.
- Extended Position Description (EPD). Another format which gives the current positions of a board, with an extended set of structured attribute values using the ASCII character set. It is intended for data and command interchange among chessplaying programs. It is also intended for the representation of portable opening library repositories. It is better than FEN for certain chess variantChess variantA chess variant is a game related to, derived from or inspired by chess. The difference from chess might include one or more of the following:...
s, such as Fischer Random Chess.
Notation for telegraph and radio
Some special methods of notation were used for transmitting moves by telegraph or radio, usually using Morse CodeMorse code
Morse code is a method of transmitting textual information as a series of on-off tones, lights, or clicks that can be directly understood by a skilled listener or observer without special equipment...
. The Uedemann Code and Gringmuth Notation worked by using a two-letter label for each square and transmitting four letters - two letters for the origin square followed by two letters for the destination square. Castling is shown as a king move. Squares are designated from White's side of the board, files from left to right and ranks from nearest to farthest. The Rutherford Code first converted the move into a number and then converted the move number into a composite Latin word. It could also transmit moves of two games at the same time.
Uedemann Code
This code was devised by Louis UedemannLouis Uedemann
Louis Uedemann was an American chess master.He twice won the U.S. Open Chess Championship at Excelsior 1900 and Excelsior 1902 ....
(1854–1912). The method was never actually used, mainly because a transposition of letters can result in a valid but incorrect move. Many sources incorrectly use this name for the Gringmuth Code.
The files are labeled "A", "E", "I", "O", "O", "I", "E", and "A". The ranks are labeled "B", "D", "F", "G", "H", "K", "L", and "P". A square on the queenside is designated by its file letter and then its rank letter. A square on the kingside is designated by its rank letter then its file letter.
Gringmuth Notation
This method was invented by D.A. Gringmuth but it is sometimes incorrectly called the Uedemann Code. It was used as early as 1866. Files were designated with one of two letters, depending on whether it was on White's side or Black's side. These letters were: B and M, C and N, D and P, F and R, G and S, H and T, K and W, L and Z. Files were labeled: "A", "E", "I", "O", "O", "I", "E", and "A".Rutherford Code
This code was invented in 1880 by Sir William Watson Rutherford (1853–1927). At the time, the British Post Office did not allow digits or cipherCipher
In cryptography, a cipher is an algorithm for performing encryption or decryption — a series of well-defined steps that can be followed as a procedure. An alternative, less common term is encipherment. In non-technical usage, a “cipher” is the same thing as a “code”; however, the concepts...
s in telegrams, but they did allow Latin words. This method also allowed moves for two games to be transmitted at the same time. In this method, the legal moves in the position were counted using a system until the move being made was reached. This was done for both games. The move number of the first game was multiplied by 60 and added to the move number of the second game. Leading zeros were added as necessary to give a four-digit number. The first two digits would be 00 through 39, which corresponded to a table of 40 Latin roots. The third digit corresponded to a list of 10 Latin prefixes and the last digit corresponded to a list of 10 Latin suffixes. The resulting word was transmitted.
After rules were changed so that ciphers were allowed in telegrams, this system was replaced by the Gringmuth Notation.
Recording the positions of pieces
Positions are usually shown as diagrams (images), using the symbols shown here for the pieces.There is also a notation for recording positions in text format, called the Forsyth–Edwards Notation (FEN). This is useful for adjourning a game to resume later or for conveying chess problem positions without a diagram. A position can also be recorded by listing the pieces and the square upon which they reside, e.g. White: Ke1, Rd3, etc.
Endgame classification
There are also systems for classifying types of endgames. See Chess endgame#Endgame classification for more details.History
Algebraic chess notation
Algebraic notation is a method for recording and describing the moves in a game of chess. It is now standard among all chess organizations and most books, magazines, and newspapers...
, the others show the evolution of descriptive chess notation
Descriptive chess notation
Descriptive notation is a notation for recording chess games, and at one time was the most popular notation in English-speaking and Spanish-speaking countries , . It was used in Europe until it was superseded by abbreviated algebraic notation, which was introduced by Philipp Stamma in 1737...
and use spelling and notation of the period.
- 1614: The white king commands his owne knight into the third house before his owne bishop.
- 1750: K. knight to His Bishop's 3d.
- 1837: K.Kt. to B.third sq.
- 1848: K.Kt. to B's 3rd.
- 1859: K. Kt. to B. 3d.
- 1874: K Kt to B3
- 1889: KKt -B3
- 1904: Kt-KB3
- 1946: N-KB3
- Modern: Nf3
A text from Shakespeare's time uses complete sentences to describe moves, for example, "Then the black king for his second draught brings forth his queene, and placest her in the third house, in front of his bishop's pawne" - which we would now write as 2 ... Qf6. The great 18th-century player Philidor
François-André Danican Philidor
François-André Danican Philidor , often referred to as André Danican Philidor during his lifetime, was a French composer and chess player. He contributed to the early development of the opéra comique...
used an almost equally verbose approach in his influential book "Analyse du jeu des Échecs", for example, "The king's bishop, at his queen bishop's fourth square."
Rather surprisingly, algebraic chess notation
Algebraic chess notation
Algebraic notation is a method for recording and describing the moves in a game of chess. It is now standard among all chess organizations and most books, magazines, and newspapers...
was used by Philipp Stamma (c. 1705-1755) in an almost fully developed form before the now obsolete descriptive chess notation
Descriptive chess notation
Descriptive notation is a notation for recording chess games, and at one time was the most popular notation in English-speaking and Spanish-speaking countries , . It was used in Europe until it was superseded by abbreviated algebraic notation, which was introduced by Philipp Stamma in 1737...
evolved. The main difference between Stamma's system and the modern system is that Stamma used "p" for pawn moves and the original file of the piece ("a" through "h") instead of the initial letter of the piece.
But Philidor defeated Stamma in a match, so his writings had more influence and the descriptive system based on his approach was dominant for a long time. Algebraic notation became dominant in the 20th century, although it did not become popular in the English-speaking countries until the 1970s.