Descriptive notation: Difference between revisions

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==Description==

===Nomenclature===

With the exception of the [[Knight (chess)|knight]], each piece is abbreviated as the first letter of its name: '''K''' for [[King (chess)|king]], '''Q''' for [[Queen (chess)|queen]], '''R''' for [[Rook (chess)|rook]], '''B''' for [[Bishop (chess)|bishop]], and '''P''' for [[Pawn (chess)|pawn]]. As ''knight'' begins with the same letter as ''king'', it is abbreviated as either '''N, Kt''' or KT'''Kt''', the first being the modern convention. In 1944, ''[[Chess Review]]'' received many letters debating the change from Kt to N.<ref>{{harvcol|Lawrence|2009|p=10}}</ref>

[[Image:English Descriptive Chess Notation.svg|thumb|360px|Names of the squares in English descriptive notation]]

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'''Spanish descriptive notation''' uses a similar system, with a few differences:

* The initials to identify the pieces are taken from the equivalent Spanish words: R = ''rey'' (king), D = ''dama'' (queen, {{lit|lady}}), T = ''torre'' (rook), C = ''caballo'' (knight), A = ''[[alfil]]'' (bishop, {{lit|war elephant}}) and P = ''peón'' (pawn). The files are named after the initials of the pieces on the first rank, with those on the queen's side being suffixed by the letter "D", and those on the king's side suffixed by the letter "R". From White's left to right along the first rank this yields: TD, CD, AD, D, R, AR, CR, TR.

* The dash, which in English descriptive notation symbolizes the word "to", is omitted.

* The numerical rank is identified ''before'' the file, e.g. "4R" is equivalent to "K4" (e4 in algebraic notation).

In Spanish descriptive notation the [[Sicilian Defence]] ('''1. P–K4 P–QB4''' in English) would be written '''1. P4R P4AD''' ({{lang|es|peón al cuatro del rey, peón al cuatro del alfil de la dama}}). This is also the method used in French descriptive notation.<ref>{{harvcol|Hooper|Whyld|1996|p=106}}</ref>

===Notation for moves===

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* ''Non-capturing move'': A move without capture is notated by the piece's name, a hyphen and the destination square, e.g. '''N–QB3''' (knight to queen's bishop 3) and '''P–QN4''' (pawn to queen's knight 4).

* ''{{chessgloss|capture|Capture}}'': A capture is notated by the piece's name, a cross ("x"×), and the name of the piece captured, e.g. '''Q×N''' (queen captures knight).

* ''[[Castling]]'': The notation '''O-O''' is used for castling {{chessgloss|kingside}} and '''O-O-O''' for castling {{chessgloss|queenside}}. The word "'''Castles'''" is sometimes used instead, particularly in older literature, in which case it may be necessary to disambiguate between kingside and queenside castling; this may be done by specifying the rook or side, i.e. "'''Castles KR'''," "'''Castles Q''',"or "'''Castles queenside'''".<ref>{{Cite book|last=Reinfeld|first=Fred|title=The Seventh Book of Chess|publisher=Barnes & Noble|year=1963|isbn=9780064632744|___location=U.S.}}</ref>

* ''[[Promotion (chess)|Promotion]]'': Parentheses are used to indicate promotion, with the promotion piece enclosed in parentheses, e.g. '''P–R8(Q)'''.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1963/07/25/archives/chess-pr8-q-then-pr8-q-leads-to-some-fireworks.html | title=Chess:; P-R8 (Q) then ... P-R8 (Q) Leads to Some Fireworks | work=The New York Times | date=25 July 1963 | last1=Horowitz | first1=Al }}</ref> Sometimes a slash or an equal sign is used, e.g. '''P–R8P–N8/QR''', '''P–R8P×R=QN'''.

* ''Special terms and symbols'': Special indicators that are appended to the move include "e.p." (''[[en passant]]''), "ch" or "+" ([[Check (chess)|check]]), "?" (a [[question mark]] for a bad move), "!" (an [[exclamation mark]] for a good move), "mate" or "++" ([[checkmate]]), "[[Rules of chess#Resigning|resigns]]" and "[[draw (chess)|draw]]".

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#P3A A4T

#P4D P×P

#O–OO-O P6D

#D3C D3A

#P5R D3C

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# c3 Ba5

# d4 exd4

# 0–00-0 d3

# Qb3 Qf6

# e5 Qg6

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| caption4 =This player uses dots instead of dashes, so "Pawn to Queen 4" is '''P. Q. 4'''. He also denotes castling as '''Castles'''.

| header =Scorecards from a 1931 tournament demonstrating variations in descriptive notation.

}}

==Notes==

{{Reflist}}

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|isbn=0-19-280049-3 }}

*{{Citation

|lastlast1=Just|firstfirst1=Tim

|last2=Burg|first2=Daniel B.

|year=2003