Chess in early literature

The historical tracing of the board game chess relies heavily upon the literary sources of different civilisations, as written references often serve as the earliest surviving evidence of the game’s existence in specific regions. Because several terms historically associated with chess have also referred to other board games, scholars frequently confront ambiguity in determining whether early descriptions refer to true antecedents of modern chess or to unrelated games. Consequently, the earliest certain references often appear centuries after tentative or ambiguous mentions. The following article outlines key early textual references to chess or chess-like games and examines their cultural and historical contexts.

Early Context and Challenges of Identification

Literary references to board games in antiquity and the medieval world often employ terminology that overlaps across multiple games. For instance, in China the term xiangqi has historically denoted at least three distinct games, only one of which aligns with the Chinese chess known today. In medieval Europe, references to tables sometimes appear alongside chess terminology, creating additional interpretative difficulties. Historians therefore consider whether the rules, vocabulary, or descriptive metaphors within texts correspond to known forms of chaturanga, shatranj, or later European chess before accepting them as reliable evidence.

References from Byzantium

The earliest known reference associated with the Byzantine world dates to c. 923, found in Kitab akhbar ar-rusul wa’l-muluk by Muhammad ibn Jarir al-Tabari. Though the text is an Arabic work rather than Greek, it documents knowledge circulating within Byzantine territories or among adjacent cultures. No definitive early Greek sources referring directly to chess survive, but the record suggests that contact with the Islamic world provided a conduit through which chess entered the region.

Chinese Literary Mentions

China provides some of the oldest surviving references to board games resembling chess, though ambiguity persists. A possible mention occurs during the lifetime of Liu Xiang (79–8 BC) within Shuo yuan, a compilation of early Confucian anecdotes. One line asks whether a person still feels inclined to play xiangqi and dance. Since the rules of the game are not described, scholars debate whether this xiangqi corresponds to Chinese chess or to one of the unrelated games that once shared the same name.
A clearer reference appears in the c. 900 AD text Huan Kwai Lu (Book of Marvels), which provides a description of the rules of xiangqi. This is widely accepted as a reliable record of the mediaeval Chinese chess variant.

Western European Developments

Western European literary references begin to appear in the early medieval period, often reflecting the spread of shatranj from Islamic Spain and the broader Mediterranean.

• England (c. 1180): Alexander Neckam’s De Natura Rerum includes a reference to chess, though it is thought that Neckam may have encountered the game in Italy.
• France (c. 1127): A song by Guilhem IX, Count of Poitiers and Duke of Aquitaine, contains an early French reference, illustrating the game’s presence within aristocratic culture.
• Germany (c. 1070): The Latin poem Ruodlieb (IV. 184–188), attributed to a monk near Tegernsee, includes a mention of chess-playing, indicating its monastic and courtly familiarity.
• Switzerland (c. 997): Versus de scachis, preserved in manuscript 319 at the Stiftsbibliothek Einsiedeln, is exceptionally significant. This didactic poem contains the earliest known reference to chess in a European text and the oldest mention of both the checkerboard and the chess queen. The poem has been extensively studied, notably by Helena M. Gamer in her seminal 1954 analysis.

Early Indian References

India is widely regarded as the birthplace of chaturanga, the precursor to many later chess variants. Literary references appear relatively early:

• c. 500 AD: Subandhu’s Vasavadatta includes an evocative metaphor comparing frogs jumping on a field to chessmen on a chequered board.
• c. 625: Bana’s Harsha Charitha contains metaphors likening administrative harmony to the order of chaturanga, alongside references to the Ashtapada board, an early grid used for several games.
• c. 1030: Al-Biruni’s India describes chaturaji, a four-player variant associated with Indian intellectual life.
• 1148: Kalhana’s Rajatarangini uses imagery from chaturaji to describe military situations, indicating the game’s cultural penetration in Kashmir.

These references collectively help establish the continuity of Indian board-game traditions and their influence on later chess forms.

Italian Documentary Evidence

Italy provides important ecclesiastical references. A letter dated c. 1061–1062 from Pietro Damiani, Cardinal Bishop of Ostia, addressed to Pope-elect Alexander II and Pope Gregory VII, includes mention of chess. Its significance lies in showing the game’s diffusion among clergy and the educated elite.

Persian Textual Evidence

Persia, a vital intermediary in the transmission of chess to the Islamic world and beyond, offers a c. 600 reference within Karnamaki Artakhshatr Papakan. The text recounts Artakhshir excelling in various accomplishments, including shatranj, the Persian form of chess. Since the specific term shatranj is used, scholars generally consider this a firm early reference.

Spanish Medieval Source

In Spain, the earliest known written reference occurs in the c. 1007–1008 will of Ermengol I, Count of Urgell. The document instructs that his chessmen be granted to the convent of St Giles. This is valuable evidence for the game’s presence among the nobility during the early eleventh century.

Russian Ecclesiastical Evidence

Russia’s earliest known reference comes from the 13th-century Kormchaia, a body of church laws that bears witness to the game’s emergence within Slavic cultural contexts.

Southeast Asian Example

In maritime Southeast Asia, the c. 1620 Sejarah Melayu refers to Tan Bahra, a famously skilful chess player who competed with the men of Malacca. This demonstrates that chess had spread far into Southeast Asia by the early modern period and had become integrated into prominent political and literary traditions.