Lesson: Algebraic Notation
Lesson Number: 1
Level: Beginner

Algebraic Notation is the core to understanding chess games. Just like you need to know the lingo of computer programming to be able to talk to a computer programmer, you need to be able to understand the "lingo" of chess players to be able to learn and improve. Algebraic Notation is the form used to write down chess games. Each chess piece has its own letter and each square of the chess board (all 64 of them) have their own letter and number. Algebraic Notation is helpful because it allows all people who understand it to view and analyze a game.
Now, first off, each chess piece is given a letter:

King=K
Queen=Q
Rook=R
Bishop=B
Knight=N

Please note two things:
1) Pawns are not given any letter. When using Algebraic Notation, no letter goes before a pawn move.
2)Do not confuse the King (K) with the Knight (N). Since they both start with the letter "K", the King gets the honor of having the "right" letter.

Moving on, each square of the board has a letter and number. So get out your chess board and look at it. Make sure that a white square is to your right, or just remember the saying "white on right". Now, the very first column starting on your LEFT is know as the "A" column (another word for column is "file") and then the one next to that is the "B" column and it goes on until the last column is the "H" column. Starting at the bottom of the chess board, the very first horizontial row you see is the first (1) "rank". The row right above the first is (you guess it!) the second (2) "rank". This goes on until the very tip-top row is the eighth (8) "rank".

In other words...the chess board is set up just like a grid of sixty-four squares. Now, here is the part where we put all of this information together. We name the square in the first file and first rank a1. Did you get that? The last square in the first rank would then be h1. Okay, here comes a tough one...the seventh square in the second file of the first rank would be a7. Do you get the pattern? If you don't, go back and read again until it makes sense.
If you do, go on to the next section.

So, we can now say specifically where a square on the chess board is. Try finding these squares:

a1
b4
e6
f5
c7
h8
d2
g3

Hopefully you could easily locate those squares without any trouble.

Now comes the part where we combine the pieces with the squares. Remember how we said that the letter for the Queen was Q? Well, in Algabraic Notation if we write down:

Qd2

That means that the Queen moved to the d2 square.

The whole purpose of Algabraic Notation is to be able to write down moves of a chess game in a way that everybody agrees upon. So, if the first four moves of the game went like this:

1)e4 e5
2)Nf3 Nc6
3)Nc3 Nf6
4)Bc4 Bc5

Would you be able to understand what moves were made?

Remember, in recording a chess game, white always goes first (in this case e4) and black responds with his move (e5).

Now, what if one of the players had moved a pawn? That's easy! pawn moves don't require a letter before them. Simply write:

h4

If a pawn moved to h4!

Think you got it? Okay...let's add some more information. There are little symbols that you will come across when looking at a chess game in Algabraic Notation. These symbols and their meanings are:

! = A good move
!!= A super good move
? = A bad move or "blunder"
??=A very bad move
?!=An interesting move
+=check
#=checkmate
x=takes

Sooo...to sum it all up...if you saw:

Bxe3??

You would immediately know that the Bishop took e3 and that it was a terrible mistake.

So there...now you know everything you need to know about how to "read" a chess game. Look at the "Lesson Game" and see if you can't play it and find out why some of the moves are marked the way they are. Learn lots and Enjoy!