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Constitutional Characters. A systematic set of names for Major and Minor pieces.[All Comments] [Add Comment or Rating]The use of orthogonal to indicate 'rook-wise' movement is not restricted to the CVP. Pritchard uses the term in <u>The Encyclopedia of Chess Variants</u> ('<i>Rook</i> as Queen, but orthogonally only'), and Parlett uses the term in <u>The Oxford History of Board Games</u>. Parlett's definition is kind of interesting:
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<i>Orthogonal</i> describes a move in which a piece, travelling in a straight line through the centers of two or more cells, crosses each boundary at right angles to it. (The word derives from roots meaning 'right angle'.)
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Now Parlett might have been influenced by the CVP -- he gives us as a source -- Pritchard is and has been an influence <strong>on</strong> us. Where Pritchard's usage might have came from, I don't know.
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A Google search on 'Orthogonal Movement' brings many interesting things to light, including usages from other fields that seem to echo our use of the term. It also seems to be widely spread through the wargaming field, but that might be Parlett's fault.
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Parlett also coins the term <i>Hippogonal</i> for a Knight's direction of movement. Now, this means 'horse-angled', which I think is a kind of nice usage.