The 10 Best (And Weirdest) Animal Nicknames In Chess

From wrestling with boa constrictors to battling wolves in deep, dark forests… Playing a chess grandmaster can feel like being hunted by an animal much deadlier than yourself. 

It's no wonder many of the world's best players have nicknames likening them to dangerous creatures. Check out some of the very best animal nicknames in chess, from powerful predators to spiky little hedgehogs and slippery eels.

The Tiger Of Madras (GM Vishwanathan Anand)

One of Vishy's many nicknames is "The Tiger of Madras," which is probably the coolest-sounding moniker out of this entire list. If you're wondering what it means, Madras is the old name for the city of Chennai (where Anand grew up), and tigers are... well, tigers—apex predators at the very top of the food chain. India's legendary grandmaster may have a reputation in the chess world as a gentleman, but he is still a ferocious force to be reckoned with on the 64 squares.

The Boa Constrictor (GM Anatoly Karpov)

Karpov's nickname over the years was "The Boa Constrictor." And for good reason, too. The Russian grandmaster's patient style was devastatingly effective, slowly squeezing his opponents into submission and removing any hope of escape. Check out this game against GM Wolfgang Unzicker (and watch the accompanying video) to see the chess equivalent of what might happen if your pet hamster sneaks into the snake enclosure at the zoo.

The Stormy Petrel Of Chess (Aron Nimzowitsch)

Aron Nimzowitsch was known as "The Stormy Petrel of Chess" for a simple reason: He was born with two gigantic wings, which he used to viciously batter his opponents until they resigned.

More truthfully, the nickname came from advertising material describing his book, My System, with the publisher likening Nimzowitsch to the maritime bird due to the old master's mysterious nature and a tendency to go his own way instead of following the crowd. 

The Kentucky Lion (Jackson Showalter)

Showalter was the first United States Chess Champion and faced some of the game's most legendary players. Emanuel Lasker remarked: "No man in all my experience ever stood up with such a formidable front as the talented Kentuckian. He is the greatest player I ever met."

With dazzling play full of romantic sacrifices, Showalter was the pride of his native Kentucky. Much like the Tiger of Madras, the Kentucky Lion was also notable for possessing a rare and valuable trait sought after by many chess players (myself included): good social skills and a well-liked personality.

The jury is out on whether he received his nickname due to his ferocious playing style or his luscious head of hair, described as "a thick mane" in The Oxford Companion to Chess. Either way, the Kentucky Lion roared his way through multiple decades of chess in the United States.

PenguinGM (GM Andrew Tang)

Andrew Tang is one of the fastest bullet chess players in the world and is generally considered one of the best hyperbullet players. Enter the penguin. These naturally tuxedoed creatures look unassuming, but they have spectacular speed underwater. Have you seen a penguin dive-bombing all over the place in an aquarium before? Imagine that, but from the perspective of a tasty little fish who isn't good at playing chess in faster time controls. Terrifying.

Maybe that's slightly deeper than Tang originally intended when he chose his online chess username, PenguinGM: "I was 7, and I liked penguins."

The Beast Of Baku (GM Garry Kasparov)

To get an impression of how feared Garry Kasparov was in his prime, just look at his nickname. Playing against him back in the day must have felt like a whirlwind of sharp claws, fangs, and fighting spirit overwhelming you.

While "beast" is a little generic in terms of describing a specific animal, imagine some combination of a honey badger, a Tasmanian devil, and a lion all merged into one scowling generational talent.

The Spider (GM Michael Adams)

Adams has been called "The Spider" and "Spiderman" at various points in his career due to his penchant for fighting petty criminals as part of his masked vigilante justice career ability to create intricate nets and traps for his opponent. Check out the game against GM Judit Polgar below if you're not arachnophobic, and remember that with great power comes great responsibility.

The GOAT (GM Magnus Carlsen)

Magnus Carlsen has many nicknames, but these days, you'll often find people referring to him as the GOAT. This is because outside of chess, Carlsen is known for his exceptional climbing abilities and is often found grazing on vegetation across steep Norwegian mountainsides. Out of respect for his astounding balance and to avoid his powerful headbutts, the word "goat" is capitalized. 

GOAT is also commonly used to abbreviate "Greatest Of All Time," which I'm sure has nothing to do with this fantastic animal-based nickname.

The Iron Tiger / The Eel / The Alarmed Centipede / The Python / The Patient Crocodile / A Hedgehog (GM Tigran Petrosian)

It was difficult to select only one nickname for "Iron Tigran." So I picked all of them.

Harold C. Schonberg (in his book Grandmasters of Chess) describes playing Petrosian as "like trying to put handcuffs on an eel" due to his slippery and elusive play. He goes on to brilliantly describe him as "an alarmed centipede who would scuttle for the dark and lurk there, dangerous, ready to bite when threatened."

Former world champion GM Max Euwe refuted the notion of Petrosian being a tiger (or a centipede), likening him instead to "a python that smothers its victim, or even a crocodile, waiting for hours for a convenient moment to strike."

GM Boris Spassky, meanwhile, channeled the inner monologue of a scorned Golden Retriever: "Petrosian reminds me of a hedgehog. Just when you think you have caught him, he puts out his quills."

The Speelwolf (GM Jonathan Speelman)

Concluding this list is The Speelwolf. Given the nickname due to his majestically shaggy, wolf-like head of hair (and formerly fulsome beard), Speelman is a popular British grandmaster who has won the British Chess Championship on three separate occasions.

It may be noted that, unlike most wolves, Speelman enjoys a vegetarian lifestyle:

“Whatever your dietary habits—and quite a number of chess players, myself included, don't eat meat—it's in the nature of the game that professional life is fairly carnivorous.”

This didn't stop him from devouring multiple big names over the board: GMs Nigel Short, Yasser Seirawan, and Garry Kasparov—the Beast of Baku himself—were among The Speelwolf's prey over the years.

What's your chess spirit animal? Are you the Aardvark of Amsterdam, or the Sloth of Sacramento? Let the world know in the comments below.