What are the western chess pieces called in Chinese?
These answers restate the rules implemented by our open-source engine, which follows the WXF laws for movement, checkmate and both repetition rulings: a side that forces a repetition by perpetual check or perpetual chase loses rather than drawing. The chase half has not been validated against the official casebook. Where an answer refers to a specific position, that position lives on the linked reference page, where the build verifies it before publishing.
Direct answer
Western chess is 國際象棋 (guójì xiàngqí, "international xiangqi"), and its pieces are: king 王 (wáng), queen 后 (hòu, also 皇后), rook 車, bishop 象 (xiàng, "elephant"), knight 馬 (mǎ, "horse") and pawn 兵 (bīng, "soldier"). Several of these are borrowed straight from xiangqi's own piece names, which is why the rook is a chariot and the bishop an elephant.
The pieces
- King: 王 (wáng), "king". Xiangqi's equivalent piece is the general, 帥 or 將, not a king.
- Queen: 后 (hòu), "queen consort", or 皇后. Xiangqi has no equivalent.
- Rook: 車, "chariot", the same character as the xiangqi chariot, which moves the same way.
- Bishop: 象 (xiàng), "elephant". It keeps the name of the xiangqi elephant, though it moves any distance diagonally and can cross the whole board.
- Knight: 馬 (mǎ), "horse". Unlike the xiangqi horse, it cannot be blocked.
- Pawn: 兵 (bīng), "soldier".
Simplified characters are used in mainland China: 车 and 马 for chariot and horse. For the xiangqi pieces themselves, see the Chinese names of the xiangqi pieces.
Common terms
- Check: 將軍 (jiāngjūn), the same word xiangqi uses.
- Checkmate: 將死 (jiāngsǐ).
- Stalemate: 逼和 (bīhé), "forced draw", a draw in western chess, unlike xiangqi.
- Castling: 王車易位, "king and rook change places".
- Promotion: 升變. En passant: 吃過路兵, "capturing the passing pawn".
Why the names overlap
When Chinese speakers needed words for western chess, the natural source was the board game they already had. So the rook took the chariot's name, which fits, and the bishop took the elephant's, which fits less well. The shared vocabulary is handy but can mislead: a 馬 in one game is blockable and in the other is not. The page on chess in Chinese covers how to say the games' names themselves.
Related questions
How is 車 pronounced?
In xiangqi it is traditionally read jū; in everyday speech the character is usually chē. You will hear both for the western rook.
Is 象棋 xiangqi or chess?
On its own, 象棋 means xiangqi. Western chess is specified as 國際象棋.
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