Origin in China
Legends trace the origin of the game to Chinese emperor Yao (2337–2258 BC), who had his counselor Shun design it for his son, Danzhu—supposedly an unruly sort—to teach him discipline, concentration and balance. Other theories suggest that the game was derived from Chinese tribal warlords and generals, who used pieces of stone to map out attacking positions, or that Go equipment was originally a fortune-telling device.[16]
The earliest written reference of the game is generally recognized as the historical annal Zuo Zhuan[17] (c. 4th century BC),[18] referring to a historical event of 548 BC. It is also mentioned in Book XVII of the Analects of Confucius (c. 3rd century BC)[18] and in two books written by Mencius[19] (c. 3rd century BC).[18] In all of these works, the game is referred to as yì (弈). Today, in China, it is know as weiqi (traditional Chinese: 圍棋; simplified Chinese: 围棋; pinyin: wéiqí; Wade-Giles: wei ch'i)
Go was originally played on a 17×17 line grid, but a 19×19 grid became standard by the Tang Dynasty (618–907).[20]
In China, Go was perceived as the popular game of the aristocracy, while Xiangqi (Chinese chess) was the game of the masses. Go was considered one of the four cultivated arts of the Chinese scholar gentleman, along with calligraphy, painting and playing the musical instrument guqin.
Spread to Korea and Japan
Go was introduced to both Japan and Korea—where it is called baduk (hangul: 바둑)—somewhere between the 5th and 7th centuries AD, and was popular among the higher classes. In Korea, the game evolved into the variant called Sunjang baduk by the 16th century. Sunjang baduk became the main variant played in Korea until the end of the 19th century.
In Japan—where it is called go (碁 ?) or igo (囲碁 ?)—the game became popular at the Japanese imperial court in the 8th century,[24] and among the general public by the 13th century.[25] In 1603, Tokugawa Ieyasu re-established Japan's unified national government. In the same year, he assigned the then-best player in Japan, a Buddhist monk named Nikkai (né Kanō Yosaburo, 1559), to the post of Godokoro (Minister of Go).[26] Nikkai took the name Honinbo Sansa and founded the Honinbo Go school.[26] Several competing schools were founded soon after.[26] These officially recognized and subsidized Go schools greatly developed the level of play and introduced the dan/kyu style system of ranking players.[27] Players from the four schools (Honinbo, Yasui, Inoue and Hayashi) competed in the annual castle games, played in the presence of the shogun.
Go in the West
Despite its widespread popularity in East Asia, Go has been slow to spread to the rest of the world, unlike other games of ancient Asian origin, such as chess. Although there are some mentions of the game in western literature from the 16th century forward, Go did not start to become popular in the West until the end of the 19th century, when German scientist Oskar Korschelt wrote a treatise on the game.[29] By the early 20th century, Go had spread throughout the German and Austro-Hungarian empires. In 1905, Edward Lasker learned the game while in Berlin. When he moved to New York, Lasker founded the New York Go Club together with (amongst others) Arthur Smith, who had learned of the game while touring the East and had published the book The Game of Go in 1908.[30] Lasker's book Go and Go-moku (1934) helped spread the game throughout the US,[30] and in 1935, the American Go Association was formed. Two years later, in 1937, the German Go Association was founded.
World War II put a stop to most Go activity, but after the war, Go continued to spread.[31] For most of the 20th century, the Japan Go Association played a leading role in spreading Go outside East Asia by publishing the English-language magazine Go Review in the 1960s; establishing Go centers in the US, Europe and South America; and often sending professional teachers on tour to Western nations.[32]
In 1996, NASA astronaut Daniel Barry and Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata became the first people to play Go in space. Both astronauts were awarded honorary dan ranks by the Nihon Ki-in.
As of 2008, the International Go Federation has a total of 71 member countries.[34] It has been claimed that across the world 1 person in every 222 plays Go.
Legends trace the origin of the game to Chinese emperor Yao (2337–2258 BC), who had his counselor Shun design it for his son, Danzhu—supposedly an unruly sort—to teach him discipline, concentration and balance. Other theories suggest that the game was derived from Chinese tribal warlords and generals, who used pieces of stone to map out attacking positions, or that Go equipment was originally a fortune-telling device.[16]
The earliest written reference of the game is generally recognized as the historical annal Zuo Zhuan[17] (c. 4th century BC),[18] referring to a historical event of 548 BC. It is also mentioned in Book XVII of the Analects of Confucius (c. 3rd century BC)[18] and in two books written by Mencius[19] (c. 3rd century BC).[18] In all of these works, the game is referred to as yì (弈). Today, in China, it is know as weiqi (traditional Chinese: 圍棋; simplified Chinese: 围棋; pinyin: wéiqí; Wade-Giles: wei ch'i)
Go was originally played on a 17×17 line grid, but a 19×19 grid became standard by the Tang Dynasty (618–907).[20]
In China, Go was perceived as the popular game of the aristocracy, while Xiangqi (Chinese chess) was the game of the masses. Go was considered one of the four cultivated arts of the Chinese scholar gentleman, along with calligraphy, painting and playing the musical instrument guqin.
Spread to Korea and Japan
Go was introduced to both Japan and Korea—where it is called baduk (hangul: 바둑)—somewhere between the 5th and 7th centuries AD, and was popular among the higher classes. In Korea, the game evolved into the variant called Sunjang baduk by the 16th century. Sunjang baduk became the main variant played in Korea until the end of the 19th century.
In Japan—where it is called go (碁 ?) or igo (囲碁 ?)—the game became popular at the Japanese imperial court in the 8th century,[24] and among the general public by the 13th century.[25] In 1603, Tokugawa Ieyasu re-established Japan's unified national government. In the same year, he assigned the then-best player in Japan, a Buddhist monk named Nikkai (né Kanō Yosaburo, 1559), to the post of Godokoro (Minister of Go).[26] Nikkai took the name Honinbo Sansa and founded the Honinbo Go school.[26] Several competing schools were founded soon after.[26] These officially recognized and subsidized Go schools greatly developed the level of play and introduced the dan/kyu style system of ranking players.[27] Players from the four schools (Honinbo, Yasui, Inoue and Hayashi) competed in the annual castle games, played in the presence of the shogun.
Go in the West
Despite its widespread popularity in East Asia, Go has been slow to spread to the rest of the world, unlike other games of ancient Asian origin, such as chess. Although there are some mentions of the game in western literature from the 16th century forward, Go did not start to become popular in the West until the end of the 19th century, when German scientist Oskar Korschelt wrote a treatise on the game.[29] By the early 20th century, Go had spread throughout the German and Austro-Hungarian empires. In 1905, Edward Lasker learned the game while in Berlin. When he moved to New York, Lasker founded the New York Go Club together with (amongst others) Arthur Smith, who had learned of the game while touring the East and had published the book The Game of Go in 1908.[30] Lasker's book Go and Go-moku (1934) helped spread the game throughout the US,[30] and in 1935, the American Go Association was formed. Two years later, in 1937, the German Go Association was founded.
World War II put a stop to most Go activity, but after the war, Go continued to spread.[31] For most of the 20th century, the Japan Go Association played a leading role in spreading Go outside East Asia by publishing the English-language magazine Go Review in the 1960s; establishing Go centers in the US, Europe and South America; and often sending professional teachers on tour to Western nations.[32]
In 1996, NASA astronaut Daniel Barry and Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata became the first people to play Go in space. Both astronauts were awarded honorary dan ranks by the Nihon Ki-in.
As of 2008, the International Go Federation has a total of 71 member countries.[34] It has been claimed that across the world 1 person in every 222 plays Go.
