Did the game of Chess originate in India?

Chess is considered as a game of the kings. Perhaps this is the oldest game in the world. It is believed that this game was started about 5000 years ago.

The word chess finds its origin in the Persian word ‘Shah’ which means ‘king’. This gives the impression that chess was started in Persia, but actually this is not true.

Indeed, chess was started in India. It is said that in the olden days, kings and emperors of India used to play chess to satisfy their desire for fighting in a safe way. It is said that Mandodari, the wife of King Ravana, taught this game to the demons so that they could pass their time without creating much trouble.

For about 2000 years, this game remained confined to India. But later on, it spread to Arabia, Persia and the countries of Europe. Slowly, it became popular all over the world. Now it is regarded as the national game of Russia. Currently, there are about seven million chess players in Russia.

In 1255, the game of chess reached England. In 1851, an international competition in chess was held in London.

The International Federation of Chess Players was founded in France in 1924.

Dr. Emanuel Lasker of Germany was the chess champion of the world for 27 years from 1894 to 1921. A woman chess player, Vera Menchik of Great Britain, held the world championship from 1927 to 1944 till her death. Mikhail Nekhemevich, who achieved this feat at the age of 23, was the youngest chess champion of the world.

During the Mogul period, the game of chess was very popular in India. In those days, the game became fashionable among the royal families. The chess players of India were experts in clever moves, but they did not teach their moves to others and their expertise died with them. Due to this reason, India has been lacking world class players.

Today, a world competition in chess is held every three years.

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