Tafl games

Tafl games (pronounced [tavl]), often called hnefatafl games, are a group of ancient strategy board games from Northern Europe. They are played on a checkered or latticed board, with two sides that have unequal numbers of pieces. Different versions go by names like hnefatafl, tablut, tawlbwrdd, brandubh, Ard Rí, and alea evangelii. These games were played across Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, Britain, Ireland, and Sápmi. During the medieval period, the Roman game latrunculi helped shape their development. By the 12th century, chess had largely replaced tafl games, though the Sámi variant tablut continued to be played until at least the 1700s. The rules for tablut were recorded in 1732 by the Swedish naturalist Linnaeus and formally published in 1737; an English translation from the original Latin appeared in 1811. Many modern tafl games draw on that 1811 translation, which contained many mistakes, but modern reconstructions also rely on other historical sources. To fix the problems caused by those errors, new rules were added, giving rise to a modern family of tafl games. Tablut is now also played according to its original rules, which have been retranslated.

**Etymology**

The English word *tafl* comes from Old Norse, where it meant "table" and served as a general term for board games. By the end of the Viking Age, *hnefatafl* (roughly pronounced [hnevatavl] or [n̥ɛvatavl]) became the preferred name in Scandinavia, used to set this game apart from others like *skáktafl* (chess), *kvatrutafl* (tables), and *halatafl* (fox games). The name *hnefatafl* likely means "board game of the fist," combining *hnefi* ("fist") with *tafl*, where "fist" referred to the central king piece. The exact origin of the term is not fully certain, but *hnefi* definitely meant the king piece, and several sources call hnefatafl "king's table." In Anglo-Saxon England, the word *tæfl* also covered many board games. It is unclear whether the Anglo-Saxons had a distinct name for this game or simply called it *tæfl*, much as modern people might say "cards."

Several other games can be confused with tafl games because their names include *tafl* or they share similarities. *Halatafl* is the Old Norse name for fox and geese, a game known since at least the 1300s and still played in Europe. *Kvatrutafl* is the Old Norse name for tables, the medieval forerunner of backgammon.