Who doesn’t know the game of chess? Most people in the world must be familiar with this game that uses alternating black and white boards. Since ancient times the game of chess is believed to be a game that can be used to hone brain abilities. How come? When playing chess, the players are required to arrange various strategies in order to defeat their enemies through various defense and attack strategies.
History of the Game of Chess
This chess game is one of the inventions of the Muslims in the Middle Ages and still survives today. This game can be played using a variety of varied rules. The origin of the game of chess has a unique and interesting story.
Until now, the origin of the game of chess is still a mystery. About who invented chess is a mystery that has not been solved until now. However, based on its history, it is said that this chess game came from the country of Indoa which was found around the 600th century AD. In the 14th century, Ibn Khaldun, who was a Muslim from India, had associated chess with his fellow Indian named Sass Bin Dahir.
This ancient game which is almost similar to chess is called Chaturanga which means four limbs. It describes the four branches of the Indian army consisting of Elephants, horsemen, chariots and infantry. Unlike today’s chess, which consists of a board with 12 x 12 squares, Chaturanga consists of eight by eight squares. This is what is believed to be the forerunner of the emergence of the game of chess until now known by the public.
An ancient manuscript dating to Persia in the 14th century also describes that an envoy from India brought a game of chess into the Persian court. Since then chess was then brought to Spain by the Arabs. However, before reaching European countries, the people of Persia had modified this chess game into a game called Chatrang. When spread in Arabia, his name changed to Shatranj.
At that time, the chess pieces being played were named Shah who played the king and Firzan who played the general. Later, it turned into a queen on the modern game of chess. Fil which means elephant then turns into a minister in a game of chess. While Faras (horses) and Rukh (chariots) turned into fort palaces and Baidaq (pawns).
The rules of the game of chess in ancient times and today are of course very different. The biggest change seen in the game of chess is that in ancient times people used dice to play chess. Before playing chess, they will first roll the dice at each player. In Hindu philosophy in India, throwing the dice has the meaning of throwing a chance and is a way of communicating with the gods.
Unlike the game of chess in modern times like now. Chess games don’t use dice anymore. At the beginning of the game they usually use something such as coins to determine who will advance in the game. After that, they just have to think about the right strategy to defeat their enemy. Those were some explanations about the history of the game of chess. Hopefully reading this explanation can increase your knowledge about the game of chess, which not only knows about the game but also its unique history.