How do you read xiangqi notation?
These answers restate the rules implemented by our open-source engine, which follows the WXF laws and is regression-tested against the official 110-diagram repetition casebook. Where an answer refers to a specific position, that position lives on the linked reference page, where the build verifies it against the engine before publishing.
Direct answer
Every move has four parts: which piece, which file it stands on, which direction, and how far or where to. So 炮二平五 reads "cannon, file 2, traverse, to file 5" — and C2=5 in WXF romanisation says exactly the same thing.
The three directions
- 進 / + — forward, toward the opponent.
- 退 / − — backward, toward yourself.
- 平 / = — sideways along the rank.
After 平 the last number is always a destination file. After 進 or 退 it is a distance for chariots, cannons, soldiers and generals, but a destination file for horses, elephants and advisors, because those move diagonally and a distance would be ambiguous.
Files are counted from your own right
Red numbers the files 一 to 九 from Red's right; Black numbers them 1 to 9 from Black's right. So the same physical file is file 2 for one player and file 8 for the other, and a move is always written from the perspective of the side making it.
Related questions
Why do the two sides number files differently?
Because each player reads the board from their own side. It is consistent once you stop trying to use one set of numbers for both.
Which notation should I learn?
WXF if you only want to read this site and western sources; Chinese if you want books and game records. They are the same system. See reading notation.
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