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TIL the concept of "checkmate" originates from the Persian phrase "Shāh Māt," meaning "the king is helpless" or "the king is defeated." (en.wikipedia.org)

submitted 6 months ago by partybot@lemmy.ca to c/til@lemmy.ca

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[-] vodkasolution@feddit.it 23 points 6 months ago

Cool, I love etymology. Also mayday has a similar origin, it should come from the French m'aider, meaning help me

[-] seliaste@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago)

I am not a specialist of old french, but m'aider would mean "to help myself" in modern french
Interesting fact, in french the Checkmate etymology gave "Échec et mat", which litterally meants "Failure and beaten" and the game is called "Échec".

this post was submitted on 09 May 2024

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