The AGF Library

Go is so much more than a game - it's a precious cultural artifact dating back millennia, as well an inspiration for literature, poetry, humor and more! And it's all right here at your fingertips. 

Feel free to download any materials that you find intriguing, but we would appreciate it if you share the link instead of the document, so that your friends can also explore the wide-ranging materials here.

Origins and History

Speculations About The Origins of Go by Peter Shotwell Probably the most extensive such discussion anywhere, in any language. With nine appendices.

• Appendix I: A Synopsis and Commentary on Dr. Paolo Zanon's Discussion of Weiqi in the Warring States period and During the Han Dynasty

• Appendix II: A Marxist-Oriented Structural Anthropological Interpretation of Yao Myths

• Appendix III: Go and Ancient Chinese Divination: A Commentary On Shirakawa Masayoshi's A Journey in Search of the Origins of Go

• Appendix IV: Some Thoughts About the Evolution of Early Go

• Appendix V: To Be of Good Heart: A Re-dating and Re-Interpretation of How Wei Qi was Used by the Confucian Writers of the Zuo Zhuan, the Analects, and the Mencius

• ABRIDGED VERSION of Appendix V: At nine pages, this shorter article summarizes Shotwell's more significant findings. For additional source material and more detailed discussion, see the full version of Appendix V above.

• Appendix VI: Thoughts on the Relationship of Go to On China by Henry Kissinger and The Protracted Game by Scott Boorman

• Appendix VII: The Use of Shi and Li in Weiqi and American Politics: Some Notes on a Forbes Opinion Article by Mark Spitznagel This journalist who studies go with Yi-lun Yang, wrote in Forbes magazine about presidential candidate Ron Paul's purported use of Chinese concepts of "shi" and "li" in his campaign. Shotwell explores this thesis in greater depth.

• Appendix VIII: Why the West Plays Chess and the East Plays Go: How Classical Chinese and Ancient Western Grammars Shaped Different Strategies of War, Weiqi and Chess: Shotwell examines his idea that linguistic differences shaped the differing philosophies and strategic thinking of early Greece and Classical China, with historical background and commentary. 274 pages. Click here for a 16-page summary of Shotwell's most significant findings.

• Appendix IX: Seven Common Misconceptions About Early Go: Inspired by the recent popular appearance of several errors and misconceptions concerning the history of early Go in China, Peter Shotwell drew from his articles and added some new material based on recent studies to provide a handy guide for those interested in disseminating the “real story” of the history of Go in ancient China.

History of Go in China Eminent go scholar John Fairbairn writes about weiqi (go) in ancient China.

History of Go in Korea Development of baduk (Go) in Korea, including descriptio  of snjang, a variant that was stioll in use in the early 20th century.  

History of Go in Okinawa In this book, Fairbairn about an obscure island became an important terading post for Japan and China, leading to emergence of a Go community there. With recoprds of ancient games. 

A Weiqi Classic from 1000 Years Ago Qijing Shisanpian, written around 1050 AD, is the oldest known written work on the game of go. 

Opposition of the Literati to Go in Ancient China The earliest references to Go, in Chinese ancient Chinese texts, view the game as a useless distraction, barely better than doing nothing at all. Yet the game eventually became one of the "Four Accomplishments" of the Chinese gentry. Paolo Zanon shows how go eventually won favor with the Chinese upper class.

‘Real’ Go in Ukiyo-e: Some Artistic Aspects of The Physician Hua Tuo Scraping the Bone of Guan Yu to Treat an Arrow Wound by Kuniyoshi Utagawa by Peter Shotwell Why does the goban in Kuniyoshi's famous ukiyo-e have 21x21 lines instead of 19x19? Shotwell explores this and other aspects of the print that appeared on the cover of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association.

Go in Ancient and Modern Tibet by Peter Shotwell Shotwell traveled to Tibet in the early 1990's, on the trail of the origins of go. Here is what he found. A revised and expanded version of an article that appeared in Go World #69.

• Appendix I: Two Stone Tibetan Boards Discovered

• Appendix II: Gesar

• Appendix III: The Possible Spiritualism of Tibetan Go

Doers and Dreamers -- Weiqi Players and Poets by Peter Shotwell An expanded version of an article that originally appeared in The American Go Journal.

The Politics of Go in Old Shanghai translated by Roy Schmidt, edited by Peter Shotwell Tales of intrigue in the early 1900's in Shanghai. Translated by Roy Schmidt and edited by Peter Shotwell.

Go In World War II Internment Camps by Peter Shotwell The story of how Japanese-Americans preserved their way of life, and their dignity, while being held in American concentration camps during WW II.

Go and the Atomic Bomb On August 6, 1945, a championship game was in progress in Hiroshima when the first A-bomb obliterated the city. Read more here. 

The Rules

Nothing illustrates the simultaneous simplicity and complexity of Go better than the rules of play. Although Go has been played for thousands of years, the way to play was so self-evident that no one ever created a written set of rules until the Nihon Kiin (Japan Go Association) did so in 1927. Nine words - "Take turns placing stones; control more of the board" - are all you need to get started. However, at higher levels of play, situations can arise such as ko, seki, "bent four," and superko that are not easily understood. 

Four sets of rules are currently in use internationally. You don't need to know them all unless you plan to travel the world playing dan level opponents. This section is at the bottom of the page because it is least important one. Don't be discouraged! Once you reach single digit kyu level, it will be useful to understand the AGA rules, which are widely used in the West. Those who are interested in the subject can also find more on the subject in the links below. 

AGA Simplified Rules Because of difficulties resolving some unusual board positions, the American Go Association developed a set of rules that does not require tournament directors to be rules experts. There are no special cases in the AGA Rules. This edition, prepared especially for beginners, includes a printout of a 9x9 board which can be used with any two types of properly sized pieces to play a game.

AGA Concise Rules This version of the rules addresses relevant issues in a somewhat more comprehensive manner. 

AGA Rules With Commentary This is a thorough review of the reasons why the AGA Rules are more suitable for general play than other sets. 

Japanese Rules This was the first set of rules to be written out. They are known as "Territory Rules," because the basic premise is that the player who surrounds the most empty spaces wins. 

Chinese Rules In contrast to the Japanese system, these rules are known as "area rules." They declare that the player who controls the greatest number of intersections, including those occupied by their own stones, is the winner. 

Ing Rules  This rule set was created in the mid-twentieth century by Ing Chang-ki, a prominent Taiwanese industrialist and philanthropist. Used primarily in tournaments sponsored by The Ing Chang-ki Wei Ch'i Educational Foundation.

New Zealand Rules Included for the sake of thoroughness. You needn't bother unless you're planning to play Go in New Zealand. The distinguishing feature is the absence of a rule that forbids "suicide."

Comparing the Rule Sets An extensive comparison of the various rule sets. 

First Capture Go Complete novices sometimes find Go overwhelming.  The simplicity of the rules, combined with the vast scale of the playing area, combine to confound even experienced gamers. This simplified variant enables players to enjoy a challenging game using Go equipment while familiarizing themselves with some key concepts. 

Behind The Rules of Go At least three different counting systems can be used to figure out the result of a go game, all of which lead to the same result 99.9% of the time. There are at least five distinct "rule sets" of conventions and procedures. Charles Matthews thinks through some issues involved in creating a viable rule set. From the NRICH website at Cambridge University.

Sufficient but not Necessary Charles Matthews continues his review of fundamental concerns behind the rules, explicating the dilemmas posed by ko and seki, and how they are best resolved. From the NRICH website at Cambridge University.

Going First How much is the first move worth? From the NRICH website at Cambridge University.

Creative Arts

The Master of Go This lightly fictionalized account of a lengthy Go game between Honinbo Shusai, the last of the traditional Go masters, and Kitani Minoru, an upstart whose revolutionary ideas transformed the game, is a classic "passing the torch" account. It is considered the Nobel Prize-winning author's's finest work. 

The Go Masters This prizewinning 1982 movie was the first ever co-produced by Japanese and Chinese filmmakers. Originally titled "The Unfinished Game" and set during the 1930's and 1940's it has been compared to "Gone With the Wind." It may only be available by P2P sharing.  

First Kyu This novel depicts the world of Korean Go, including the unique practice of bangneki, or gambling. 

The Go Master This 2006 film depicts the life of Go Seigen, arguably the greatest player of the modern era. 

Pi Darren Aronofsky's first film, about a mathematician obsessed with the search for the secret algorithm of the universe, has become a cult classic. Care to guess where he finds it?

IGS Gallery Go-themed art was extremely popular in Japan starting in the 1700's. Here are some outstanding examples..  

Hikaru No Go A coming-of-age  tale of a young rascal's the quest for the "Divine Move.". English version available in manga and anime formats.

The Honinbo by Bob High A parodist's paradise! Bob High wrote this 43-page adaptation of The Mikado for the world of go

The AGA Songbook (3rd edition) edited by Bob Felice Dozens of go-theme parodies based on well-known American songs. There is also the 2002 songbook supplement.

Francis Roads' Go Song Collection The singer, writer and raconteur extraordinaire's new site presents dozens of European go songs, with sheet music.

Francis Roads' Go verse If you like silly go songs, you're likely to enjoy these as well. The AGA Songbook (above) also contains a poetry section.

The Go Kiburi Stories by Bob High et. al. Learn of the pun-ishing exploits of Go Kiburi, go player extraordinaire, and his sidekick, Iki Jibiki.

Some Quotes From Over 2000 Years of Go History Some examples of what has been said about go throughout history , especially in China. Compiled by Peter Shotwell from his other downloads on this page.

Judge Dee and Go Steganography by Peter Shotwell In Robert Van Gulik's The Chinese Lake Murders, a secret message is concealed in a kifu (game record). You can hide your own messages if you like, using STEGOGO. 

A Disturbance at the Chicago Airport Nakayama Noriyuki, Pro 7-Dan, master raconteur and the author of The Treasure Chest Enigma, recalls his encounter with a formidable opponent -- the Chicago airport, as he was en route to the 2000 US Go Congress.

Richard Bozulich on Kissinger on China and Go In Henry Kissinger's book On China, he claims that weiqi thinking guides military and political thinking in China. The founder of Ishi Press and author of many English-language go books disagrees.

‘Real’ Go in Ukiyo-e: Some Artistic Aspects of The Physician Hua Tuo Scraping the Bone of Guan Yu to Treat an Arrow Wound by Kuniyoshi Utagawa by Peter Shotwell Why does the goban in Kuniyoshi's famous ukiyo-e have 21x21 lines instead of 19x19? Shotwell explores this and other aspects of the print that appeared on the cover of JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association.

The Flavor of the Game Bob High reflects on what makes go special.

Go: The Study of Buddhist Ideals An essay by American Ing Goe President Ernest Brown.

The Glass Bead Game Further reflections by AIG President Ernest Brown on the essential nature of go.

Cultural Significance of Go in Blue Eye Samurai An exploration of role of Go in Blue Eye Samurai, a popular anime series set in Edo period in Japan.

Math/Science

The Quest for a Superhuman Computer Program The creation of a strong Go program was long thought to be an impossible dream. Here's how it happened.  

The Most Possible Go Games, Positions and Length of the Longest John Tromp, one of the top board game mathematicians, runs some numbers. He explains how he discovered that there are more possible positions on a Go board than there are subatomic particles in the universe - by a lot!

Play Go and Grow! by Roy Laird, Ph.D. A child specialist explains why go, among all similar games, is the best choice to stimulate cognitive and personal development.

The Deoksoo Study: Go Makes Kids Smarter Korean researchers found that studying go had a strong positive impact.

fMRI Study Shows Go Players Use the Whole Brain A Chinese team found that in contrast to chess player, who rely primarily on left-brain activity, go players use both hemispheres.

Go and Cognition by Peter Shotwell How do we learn to play go? What makes masters stronger than the rest of us? Peter Shotwell summarizes and discusses studies of go players that try to understand the nature of thought itself. Related chess studies are also discussed.

• Appendix: Some Updates and Commentaries

Exploring Project Management by Exploiting Analogy with the Game of Go In his doctoral thesis, Grant Kerr identifies 83 principles from the game of go and discusses effective application of them in the business world.

Learning from the Stones: A Go Approach to Mastering China's Strategic Concept, Shi David Lai, a professor at the US Military College, uses go as a paradigm to illustrate some essential characteristics of Chinese thought. Kissinger weiqi thinking is based largely on his understanding of this article. From The US Army War College Press. (!)

Coupon Go This go variation involves a deck of cards with various point values. Each player chooses between making a move and taking a card. Dr. Berlekamp explains how he created this variation in his quest to measure the precise value of moves.

On-Line Samurai Transform an Ancient Game New York Times writer Katie Hafner visits the world of online Go in this article from December 24, 1998. 

Games of No Chance Volume 1-5 A series of books concerning various games in which there is no element of luck, including interesting commentary on the nature of Go. Downloadable. 

Miscellaneous

Some Games Travel, Some Games Don't Why isn't Go popular everywhere? Dr. Ulrich Schadler from The Swiss Museum of Games has more interesting ideas. This paper was presented at The 2003 International Conference on Baduk in St. Petersburg. 

Family Resemblances An extended discourse on the common and distinct features of Go and chess. 

The Game to Beat All Games - A nice testimonial from The Economist. 

Richard Bozulich on Kissinger on China and Go In Henry Kissinger's book On China, he claims that weiqi thinking guides military and political thinking in China. The founder of Ishi Press and author of many English-language Go books disagrees.

Cyclic Ko Patterns If you think ko is simple, have a look at these animated examples. 

More Ko Problems Including the fiendish "Molasses Ko."

Go Problem Bestiary From the twisted mind of Harry Fearnley. 

Deviant Go Bob High suggests some unusual things to do on the go board.

Small Board Go Some players have studied the game on boards as small as 3x3. Here is what they found. 

Games of No Chance and More Games of No Chance Richard J. Nowakowski, editor Scholarly essays on a wide variety of "combinatorial games" of perfect information, where all possible moves are known to all players (unlike bridge, Stratego or Monopoly for instance). Each volume contains several interesting Go-related articles such as "Loopy Games and Go" and "Go Thermography".

Exploring Project Management by Exploiting Analogy with the Game of Go Grant Kerr earned his Ph.D. with this study of how the principles of go can be applied to project management.

Last Dango in Rochester by Bob High The only known crossword puzzle with a Go theme. Solution included.

Life and Death on the Go Board An article by Peter Schumer of Middlebury College that appeared in Math Horizons magazine.

Other Meta-sites

Here are some other websites with collections of links you may find useful.

Sensei's Library A go-theme Wiki with more than 26,000 articles.

GoBase Dozens of interviews and essays of historical and cultural interest.

GoGoD A huge compilation of articles and game records. Paywall alert. 

Baduk Club Find a player or an oponent near you, shop for merch not available elsewhere, and even stream if you like here.

GoGoD Books A variety of books on various Go-related topics that are not available elsewhere.  

GoMagic A multipurpose site with many interesting links that also offer instruction behind a paywall. 

The 2012 International Go Symposium was the first such scholarly gathering to make a complete video record of the proceedings on its own YouTube channel. Thirty recordings cover a wide range of topics of historical, cultural, scientific, and practical interest. In addition, links to associated papers, links and contact information can be found at the Symposium website.