The term checkmate is derived from the phrase shah mat. Shah means king-- think of the Shah of Iran-- and mat means...
Well, most sources will tell you that mat means dead. So Shah mat means "the king is dead." In Arabic this translation holds true.
The problem though is that in chess the king is never actually killed. The other pieces die, a pawn or a knight might be killed, but the king is only at most placed into a position in which escape is impossible, he is never killed.
"The king is dead" is simply not the correct translation.
Part of the misunderstanding stems from the fact that chess arrived in Europe from the Arabs. They introduced chess and therefore we adopted the words they used and took their translation.
Another problem is that in English the names are different. We say Checkmate, but the piece is the king, not the "check." The words we use bear no similarity with the actual piece anymore.
The truth though is that chess came to the Arabs by way of the Persians. And in Persian Shah Mat means something slightly different. Shah still means king, but mat means helpless or defeated.
So shah mat actually means "The king is helpless."
And that makes a lot more sense when it comes to chess. The king doesn't die, he is simply rendered helpless.
Long live the king!
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