Chess in Africa

The game of chess has a history of being played in the continent of Africa. Its play in South Africa is of particular interest to chess writers and historians.

The board game senet preceded chess and was favored by Ancient Egyptian royalty. Chess is thought to have first made its way to Africa through shatranj. As the Muslim conquest of Persia occurred, the Muslims took and modified chatrang, adopting it as shatranj. Shatranj is recognized as the immediate predecessor to chess. While chess in Europe has received considerable more attention by chess historians, it is thought that the game made its way to Europe from the Moors of North Africa.

In 1998, the African Chess Championship began being held. The most recent edition held in 2022 saw Egyptian players dominate. Since 2003, chess has also been played at the African Games. To date, Africa has 15 grandmasters.