Objective: Read coordinates and identify the right notation format for moves, games, and positions.
Quick answer: Shogi notation records destinations, pieces, move details, and sometimes origins; position formats such as SFEN describe the whole board rather than only one move.
Best for: International players reading lessons, sharing positions, replaying games, or moving records between shogi services.
In This Lesson
- How 9×9 board coordinates are read.
- What KIF, KI2, CSA, SFEN, and USI are used for.
- How a move such as 7g7f maps to the board.
- Which format to choose for a game, a position, or software.
Read the Board Coordinates
From Sente’s viewpoint, files are numbered 9 through 1 from left to right across the top. Ranks are labelled a through i from top to bottom in common English and software notation. The top-left square is 9a, the top-right is 1a, the bottom-left is 9i, and the bottom-right is 1i.
A Simple Move in USI Form
7g7f means move the piece from 7g to 7f. A drop uses an asterisk, such as P*5e for a Pawn dropped on 5e. Promotion is indicated with a plus sign after the move, such as 2b3c+. A move without the plus sign does not promote.
Five Common Formats
| Format | Main purpose | What it stores |
|---|---|---|
| KIF | Human-readable Japanese game records | Headers, move list, comments, and game result conventions |
| KI2 | Compact human-readable move lists | Moves with omitted details inferred from context |
| CSA | Machine-readable game records and protocol use | Explicit coordinates, pieces, sides, and results |
| SFEN | Share one position compactly | Board, side to move, pieces in hand, and move number |
| USI | Communicate moves with shogi engines | Origins, destinations, drops, and promotion choices |
SFEN Describes a Position
SFEN reads the board rank by rank, separates ranks with slashes, then records the side to move, pieces in hand, and a move number. It is useful for sharing a puzzle or analysis position because the receiver does not need the full game history. Case distinguishes the two sides, and numbers compress consecutive empty squares.
Move Records Need Context
A compact record may omit an origin square when only one piece can make the move. That is convenient for readers but less convenient for software. When a notation looks ambiguous, reconstruct the position before deciding which piece moved. English teaching materials also vary in whether ranks use letters or numerals, so identify the notation system before reading a long sequence.
Common Mistakes
- Reading files from 1 to 9 instead of 9 to 1 in the displayed Sente viewpoint.
- Confusing a move list with SFEN, which describes a position.
- Forgetting that a drop has no origin square on the board.
- Assuming every destination inside the promotion zone means promotion occurred.
- Copying a record without the starting position or format label.
Quick Check
What does the USI move P*5e describe?
In USI move notation, the asterisk identifies a drop from hand. P*5e is a Pawn drop on 5e.
Choose the Right Format
- Use a game-record format such as KIF or CSA when the move history matters.
- Use SFEN when you need to share one exact position.
- Use USI move strings when working with an engine or a parser that expects explicit coordinates.
- Label the format whenever you paste a record into the 51Shogi replay board.
References and Review
Terminology and examples were checked against the public overview of shogi notation and the format behavior supported by the 51Shogi replay board. Content reviewed July 24, 2026.