Algebraic chess notation
Algebraic chess notation is a way to write down moves in a chess game so that other people can understand what happened in the game. It uses letters and numbers to show where the pieces moved on the board.
Each square on the chess board has a name that is made up of a letter and a number. The letter tells you which column the square is in, and the number tells you which row it is in. So the square in the bottom left corner is called a1, the one next to it is called b1, and so on up to h1. The square in the top right corner is called h8, and the one next to it is called g8, and so on down to a8.
To write down a move in algebraic notation, you start by writing the name of the piece that is moving. The pieces are represented by letters: K for king, Q for queen, R for rook, B for bishop, and N for knight (because K is already taken by the king). If a pawn is moving, you don't write anything, you just write the name of the square it's moving to. So if White moves the pawn from e2 to e4, you write e4.
After you write the name of the piece (or the name of the square for a pawn), you write the name of the square it's moving to. So if White moves the knight from g1 to f3, you write Nf3. If Black moves the queen from d8 to h4, you write Qh4.
If two pieces of the same type can move to the same square, you add an extra letter to show which one is moving. The letter is the name of the column the piece is coming from. So if there are two knights on the board, and one is on g1 and the other is on b1, and the one on g1 moves to f3, you write Ngf3 to show that it's the knight that was on g1.
When a piece captures another piece, you write an x between the name of the piece and the name of the square it's moving to. So if White's bishop on c4 captures Black's knight on e6, you write Bxc6.
You can also add other symbols to show things like check, checkmate, and pawn promotion, but that's a little more advanced. For now, just remember that algebraic chess notation is a way to write down moves in a chess game using letters and numbers.
Each square on the chess board has a name that is made up of a letter and a number. The letter tells you which column the square is in, and the number tells you which row it is in. So the square in the bottom left corner is called a1, the one next to it is called b1, and so on up to h1. The square in the top right corner is called h8, and the one next to it is called g8, and so on down to a8.
To write down a move in algebraic notation, you start by writing the name of the piece that is moving. The pieces are represented by letters: K for king, Q for queen, R for rook, B for bishop, and N for knight (because K is already taken by the king). If a pawn is moving, you don't write anything, you just write the name of the square it's moving to. So if White moves the pawn from e2 to e4, you write e4.
After you write the name of the piece (or the name of the square for a pawn), you write the name of the square it's moving to. So if White moves the knight from g1 to f3, you write Nf3. If Black moves the queen from d8 to h4, you write Qh4.
If two pieces of the same type can move to the same square, you add an extra letter to show which one is moving. The letter is the name of the column the piece is coming from. So if there are two knights on the board, and one is on g1 and the other is on b1, and the one on g1 moves to f3, you write Ngf3 to show that it's the knight that was on g1.
When a piece captures another piece, you write an x between the name of the piece and the name of the square it's moving to. So if White's bishop on c4 captures Black's knight on e6, you write Bxc6.
You can also add other symbols to show things like check, checkmate, and pawn promotion, but that's a little more advanced. For now, just remember that algebraic chess notation is a way to write down moves in a chess game using letters and numbers.
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