The Descriptive Notation.
Since reason, to be communicated, needs a system of expression, a kind of language, the Chess community has invented and propagated technical words and a notation of squares and moves. True, many nations follow the notation by co-ordinates described and used above: e2-e4 signifies the move that places the piece at e2 on e4; yet with many nations a descriptive notation arising from the life of the Chess community in those countries has been preferred. This notation refers to the initial position; it calls the Rooks a1 and a8 the "Queen's Rooks," Knights b1, b8 "Queen's Knights," Bishops c1, c8, "Queen's Bishops," Bishops f1, f8, "King's Bishops," Knights g1, g8, "King's Knights," Rooks h1, h8 "King's Rooks," Pawns a2, a7," Queen's Rooks' Pawns," Pawns b2, b7 "Queen's Knight's Pawns," and so on. The squares of the board, when it is White's turn to play, are called according to the line and row, e4, for instance, "King's fourth,"a5,"Queen's Rook's fifth," and when it is Black's turn to play the squares are named according to Black's point of view. For Black, who is sitting before the eighth row, that eighth row is his first row, and K4 signifies for him e5, and QR5 signifies for him a4. In short, Black and White are treated in this notation as enjoying the same privileges, either having a right to his point of view. Thus, whereas in the algebraic notation in the initial position the two usual moves to start the game e2-e4, e7-e5 are denominated in a different way, in the descriptive notation they would read White P-K4, Black P-K4, and hence they are denominated in the same way. The descriptive notation goes down to and accentuates the reason for these moves, which are identical, the algebraical notation only states the geometry of the Chess-board and therefore distinguishes between various geometrical regions of the board without heeding in any way the meaning of Chess strategy.
Either notation has its advantages, and it is useful to know both of them. For the use of a people that notation will of course be preferred that has its root in custom, tradition, history of the national Chess community. And therefore in what follows only the descriptive notation will be employed.
A few signs are international. A Capture is indicated by the oblique cross x, a Check by the straight cross +, Checkmate by #, Castling K side by O-O, Castling Q side by O-O-O.