Board Game Go Basic History

It is believed that the Go Game origin could date back to 2300 B.C. One legend of how this board game originated was during the reign of Chinese emperor Yao who had his counsellor develop this to teach his Son the ability to concentrate, balance and some discipline. Apparently the tales indicate that the son; Danzhu, was a bit of a challenge when it came to ‘discipline’. The Chinese refer to this classic board game as weiqi or wei-ch'i.
Historical writings indicated that the game spread to Korea during the 5th century AD. The Korean name for the game was baduk. Further evidence of Go in Japan date back to the 7th century AD. It eventually gained popularity with the imperial court in Japan. In 1603 the Japanese assigned a Buddhist Monk; who held the honor of being considered the best player at the time, the title of Godokoro (Minister of GO). Schools were developed for teaching, practicing and competing with individuals placing great importance on being ‘ranked’ based on wins.
The game was slow to spread to the Western world. Influenced by two gentlemen named Edward Lasker; who learned the game while in German in the early 1900’s, and Arthur Smith who learned Go while travelling in the far east, they formed the New York Go Club in 1905. During World War II and with the rather unfavorable feelings toward the Japanese in the West during that time the game ceased to be popular but did re-emerged late in the 19th century.
Using black and white stones on a 19 x 19 (originally the game was on a 17 x 17 board) game board the two players alternately place stones in an effort to conquer territory. It’s a game that makes you think, based on strategy and concentration it is truly challenging the mind. It is a game that has been around now for nearly 4000 years and is currently played all over the world.