Go Board

A go board is a 19x19 grid of lines ^[1]. The Japanese go term for go board is 碁盤 (goban).

The grid of a real-life go board isn't square but rectangular (about 8% longer than wide). This compensates for foreshortening when you look at the board.

The go stones are played on the intersections, including the edge of the board (the outer line), and the corners where two edges meet.

Dots at the nine star points, or hoshi, help the players orient themselves, and mark the location for handicap stones. The center star point is called tengen in Japanese, tianyuan in Chinese, or chunweon in Korean.

• Making a traditional goban video (in fact, it is a shogi board, very similar product)
• Applying the lines
• Carving the "gardenia" legs
• Various finished Gobans
• A special home made goban
• Another home made goban with how to
• Balancing a Warped Goban
• How to choose a Go set

Goban

Although the term goban is generally recognized and used by Western players, many English speakers avoid it, preferring instead the native English go board, or simply board. Goban is widely used, however, in other languages, including French and Dutch, in which the native term may be more cumbersome.

Some people use goban, incorrectly, to refer specifically to a Japanese go board with legs. In Japanese the word indicates a go board of any shape or form. To specify, the floor goban with legs is called ashitsuki goban (足付き碁盤 'leg-attached board') and one without legs takujou-ban (卓上盤 table-top board) or ita-ban (板盤, panel board).

See also

• What is Go
• Types of Go Boards
• Go Terms Used for Go Equipment
• Board Geography (lists the names of points and areas on the go board)
• Coordinates
• Different sized boards
• Material Goban
• Unusual gobans
• Goban Self Made
• Equipment dimensions
• Named points
• Making your own equipment