Chess Notation

Chess notation is the key to publishing chess games. It gives us the means to record games, to publish them, and to discuss specific positions on the chess board.

Algebraic notation is the most common notation in use. For the rows of the chess board it assigns the numbers '1' through '8' starting from the White side. For the columns of the board it uses the letters 'a' through 'h', left to right from the White side. The square at the intersection of a column and a row is identified by the letter for the column and the number for the row.

At the bottom is a diagram showing the two character notation for each square on the board. The square in the lower left is 'a1', while the square in the upper right is 'h8'. Note that the board is usually displayed with White at the bottom and Black at the top.

The pieces are identified by a single letter -- 'P' for Pawn, 'N' for Knight, 'R' for Rook, 'B' for Bishop, 'Q' for Queen, and 'K' for King. The letters are self-explanatory, except for the Knight, where 'N' avoids confusion with the King.

A move is a combination of the moving piece plus the square to which it is moving. The move 'Qe4' means that a Queen is moving to the square e4. By convention, the letter for the Pawn is always omitted. The move 'e4' means that a Pawn is moving to the square e4.