How Did Chess Originate?

Chess is called "the royal game" because it is considered the king of games. It is also the oldest game known and some people believed that chess had a history of about 5000 years old.

Chess is derived from the Persian word shah, which means "the king". The word "checkmate" came from the word shah mat, which means 'the king is dead". But it is not confirmed that chess originated in Persia. The origin of chess has been attributed at one time or another to the Greeks, Romans, Egyptians, Jews, Babylonians, Persians, Hindus, Chinese, Arabians and many more. In another theory it is said that chess was originated among the Buddhists in India. Chess was invented by them as a substitute of war and now it is partially proved or believe of most of the authorities that chess was originated in India and spread to Persia, Arabia and then to Western Europe. As far as the individual pieces are concerned, they had undergone many changes in the long history of chess. "Castling" was the new idea added to chess about 400 years ago.

In this era day chess is played all over the world and the international tournaments held regularly.