International Chess Day ♟

The origins of chess are a matter of debate. Multiple theories attribute the beginning of this game to countries like India, China, Russia, and Central Asia. A popular theory credits the Indian war game — ‘chaturanga’ — as the inspiration for chess. People regard this as the precursor of chess as it had two key features found in later chess variants — different pieces had different functions and the victory was based on one piece (the king, in modern chess). Versions of this game reached the east, north, and west, taking on very different characteristics each time. A version of chaturanga or a later variant called ‘shatranj’ made its way into Europe through Persia, the Byzantine Empire, and the Arabian Empire. It is believed that the reason chess pieces do not have distinctively human/animal features is because of the Islamic influence. Islam religion forbids making statues of people or animals, so this is probably why chess pieces are so vague looking. The expanding Arabian empire took chess to North Africa, Sicily, and Spain by the 10th century. At the same time, chess was being spread around the globe, Eastern Slavs took it to Kievan Rus’ and the Vikings brought the game to Iceland and England. Chess’s popularity can be attributed to the fact that it was associated with wealth, knowledge, and power. It evolved to resemble the current version of chess in England by the 15th century. The game as we know it was soon established by an Englishman, adopting the black and white squares we know so well. Modern history shows many events and competitions in relation to chess and exciting new variations of the game, which added to chess’s popularity. Further advancements soon made this game what it is today — reliable timing mechanisms came around, rules of play were put into effect, and charismatic world players burst onto the scene. The General Assembly proclaimed July 20 as International Chess Day to mark the date of establishment of the International Chess Federation (FIDE). Millions of chess players around the world celebrate this day and this game.