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    Why is the last move in a game of chess called "Checkmate?"

    Question #38861. Asked by Hamlet.. (Sep 17 03 11:07 AM)


    BelperJon

    		It's from the Arabic 'shah mat', meaning the king is dead.

    Sep 17 03, 11:20 AM
    TabbyTom

    		It's from the Arabic "shah mat" ("the king is dead").

    I thought it was Persian, but Chambers and the Oxford English Dictionary both say Arabic.

    Sep 17 03, 11:20 AM

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