The Chinese people say “qin”, “chess”, “book” and “painting”, among which “chess” refers to Weiqi. As a traditional and meaningful board game, Weiqi was invented in China more than 2,500 years ago and it is still played today.

As we know, the playing pieces are divided into black and white, it is the basis of Chinese culture, yin and yang. There are 181 black pieces and 180 white pieces. One player uses the white pieces and the other uses the black ones. Black pieces go first. The players take turns to play the pieces on the chessboard. The board surface has 361 cross points, they are said the lunar calendar 361 days.

Weiqi is also called Go by westerners. Learning it can not only improve people’s logical thinking ability, but it can also develop their calm character. That’s why it is more and more popular with modern people.

During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, Weiqi traveled to Japan, and then to Europe in the 19th century. Now it has grown into an international competition event. So far, people from over 40 countries have played it. Among them, players from China, Japan and South Korea have the highest level of Weiqi.

The pieces that made in Yunnan are famous all over the world, they are called Yunzi. The history of making Weiqi in Yunnan can be traced back to the Tang Dynasty, in which the verified history was more than 1,200 years.

On February 19, 2021, Chinese-English Dictionary of Weiqi Term (术语) came out in Beijing. It’s the first professional dictionary about Weiqi in China. As a symbol of Chinese culture, Weiqi has its special language. It also has its own way of thinking and the method of communicating. The dictionary will serve as a necessary tool and bridge for spreading Weiqi culture.

【小题1】When was Weiqi invented in China?

A．About BC (公元前) 800.	B．About BC 480.
C．About AD (公元) 480.	D．About AD 500.

【小题2】The underlined word “pieces” in Paragraph 2 means “________” in Chinese.

A．碎片

B．棋子

C．零件

D．张；片；块

【小题3】According to the passage, Weiqi can improve people’s   ________.

A．logical thinking ability

B．language ability

C．physical ability

D．writing ability

【小题4】From the passage, we can learn that ________.

A．Weiqi’s board surface has 360 cross points.

B．Weiqi traveled to Japan and Europe in Qing Dynasty.

C．Chinese-English Dictionary of Weiqi is the only professional dictionary.

D．Weiqi is a symbol of Chinese culture.

【小题5】Which can be the best title for the passage?

A．The History of Weiqi	B．The Development of Weiqi
C．An Introduction of Weiqi	D．The Methods of Playing Weiqi