user19880: When explaining chess to beginners, I often use the famous rhyme, “a knight on the rim is dim”. Is there any equivalent (rhyming) phrase in other languages?
I will accept any answer which shows at least one equivalent phrase in another language.

For those who aren’t familiar with it, “a knight on the rim is dim” means that a knight, which is placed on the edge of the board, is weak.
When a knight is placed on the edge of the board, is has influence over, or attacks, only 4 squares. However, if it is placed more centrally, it controls 8 squares, which is double the amount.


user31663: I mean "边缘的骑士是暗淡的" -< this doesn't really rhyme, but it sounds catchy when you say it in Chinese! :)
Basically a translation of "a knight on the rim is dim"
The pinyin is "Biān yuán de qí shì shì àn dàn de"

user33083: Portuguese:
"Cavalo no canto só traz desencanto."
Or
"Cavalo na beira é besteira".
They mean respectively,
A knight on a corner brings only bad news, and A Knight on the rim is foolish".

user32092: Japanese?
ナイトの価値は縁の内。(Naito no kachi wa fuchi no uchi.)
The knight's worth is (as a topic, somehow related to) the inside of the border.

user32104: A rhyming version in Chinese is:
马跳边，易被歼
(ma tiao bian, yi bei jian)
Which roughly translates as "A horse that jumps to the edge is easily destroyed", where horse is the Chinese name for the knight in chess.

user32073: Danish
"En springer på randen er en springer på spanden"
This literally translates to "A knight on the rim is a knight on the bucket". Here, "on the bucket" is an idiom meaning "in trouble" in Danish.

user9188: Norwegian
"En springer på randen er en springer i sanden."
A Knight on the edge is a Knight in the sand.
One source claims this is a (bad) translation of the Dr. Siegbert Tarrasch's German version.

user7297: Dutch
It's similar to the German version (not a surprise given the familiarity between both languages) but the Dutch version, which made Wikipedia, is:

Een paard aan de rand is een schand

which literally translated is

A knight on the edge is a shame


user1976: In Swedish, there is En springare på randen är en springare på stranden. — A knight on the edge is a knight on the beach.  It seems real but not very common: searching, I find one usage in print, in the Tidskrift för Shack (Journal of Chess), 1990, issue 9, p. 404.
It’s interesting that the Swedish, Norwegian, and Danish versions all use different nouns at the end (strand, sand, spand), even though they could have used the same — at least strand and sand are the same in all three languages.  From this, together with the rarity of the Swedish and Danish versions, I guess they arose independently as ad hoc translations of the more well-established German version — translating it requires changing the noun, since the direct cognate of Schand in all the Scandinavian languages is skam, which wouldn’t rhyme.

user32070: Italian
Cavallo sul bordo,
Spettacolo balordo
Literally, “a knight on the rim is an awkward spectacle”

user9179: The Spanish version is not the most elegant one, but there it goes:
"Con los caballos por los rincones
vas a ganar por los cojones"
Perfect consonant rhyme, which can be (liberally) translated as "placing your knights int he dims, you won't win at all".
The thing is that "por los cojones" refers in a very colloquial way to human male gonads. Also, "cojones" is used in a lot of Spanish idioms.
Here you have an article (most probably by Leontxo García) using a variant of the sentence in a 2001 game between Shirov and Anand.

user32065: In French, I have heard "Cavalier au bord, cavalier mort" ("a knight on the rim is a dead knight").

user23330: Russian
Конь на краю — позор на голову твою.
Literally, "a knight on the rim is a shame onto your head".
Transliterated: "kon' na krayu — pozor na golovu tvoyu".
The Russian version is just a translation of the phrase by Siegbert Tarrasch. The "на голову твою" part is unnecessary for the meaning (it's just an intensifier), but added for the rhyme.

user32023: German
Ein Springer am Rand bringt Kummer und Schand.
= (lit.): A knight on the rim brings sorrow and shame.

19880: <p>When explaining chess to beginners, I often use the famous rhyme, <strong>“a knight on the rim is dim”</strong>. Is there any equivalent (rhyming) phrase in other languages?</p>
<p>I will accept any answer which shows at least one equivalent phrase in another language.</p>
<hr />
<p>For those who aren’t familiar with it, “a knight on the rim is dim” means that a knight, which is placed on the edge of the board, is weak.</p>
<p>When a knight is placed on the edge of the board, is has influence over, or attacks, only 4 squares. However, if it is placed more centrally, it controls 8 squares, which is double the amount.</p>
<p><a href="https://i.stack.imgur.com/Sq8nSm.png" rel="noreferrer"><img src="https://i.stack.imgur.com/Sq8nSm.png" alt="Diagram showing knight placement" /></a></p>
 31663: <p>I mean &quot;边缘的骑士是暗淡的&quot; -&lt; this doesn't really rhyme, but it sounds catchy when you say it in Chinese! :)</p>
<p>Basically a translation of &quot;a knight on the rim is dim&quot;</p>
<p>The pinyin is &quot;Biān yuán de qí shì shì àn dàn de&quot;</p>
 33083: <p>Portuguese:</p>
<p>&quot;Cavalo no canto só traz desencanto.&quot;</p>
<p>Or</p>
<p>&quot;Cavalo na beira é besteira&quot;.</p>
<p>They mean respectively,</p>
<p>A knight on a corner brings only bad news, and A Knight on the rim is foolish&quot;.</p>
 32092: <p>Japanese?</p>
<p>ナイトの価値は縁の内。(Naito no kachi wa fuchi no uchi.)</p>
<p>The knight's worth is (as a topic, somehow related to) the inside of the border.</p>
 32104: <p>A rhyming version in Chinese is:</p>
<p>马跳边，易被歼
(ma tiao bian, yi bei jian)</p>
<p>Which roughly translates as &quot;A horse that jumps to the edge is easily destroyed&quot;, where horse is the Chinese name for the knight in chess.</p>
 32073: <h1>Danish</h1>
<p>&quot;En springer på randen er en springer på spanden&quot;</p>
<p>This literally translates to &quot;A knight on the rim is a knight on the bucket&quot;. Here, &quot;on the bucket&quot; is an idiom meaning &quot;in trouble&quot; in Danish.</p>
 9188: <h2>Norwegian</h2>
<p>&quot;En springer på randen er en springer i sanden.&quot;<br />
A Knight on the edge is a Knight in the sand.</p>
<p>One source claims this is a (bad) translation of the Dr. Siegbert Tarrasch's <a href="https://chess.stackexchange.com/a/39248/9188">German version</a>.</p>
 7297: <h3>Dutch</h3>
<p>It's similar to the <a href="https://chess.stackexchange.com/a/39248/7297">German version</a> (not a surprise given the familiarity between both languages) but the Dutch version, which <a href="https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paard_(schaken)#Sterkte" rel="noreferrer">made Wikipedia</a>, is:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Een paard aan de rand is een schand</p>
</blockquote>
<p>which literally translated is</p>
<blockquote>
<p>A knight on the edge is a shame</p>
</blockquote>
 1976: <p>In Swedish, there is <em>En springare på randen är en springare på stranden.</em> — <em>A knight on the edge is a knight on the beach.</em>  It seems real but not very common: searching, I find one usage in print, in the <em>Tidskrift för Shack</em> (<em>Journal of Chess</em>), 1990, issue 9, p. 404.</p>
<p>It’s interesting that the Swedish, <a href="https://chess.stackexchange.com/a/39266/1976">Norwegian</a>, and <a href="https://chess.stackexchange.com/a/39267/1976">Danish</a> versions all use different nouns at the end (<em>strand</em>, <em>sand</em>, <em>spand</em>), even though they could have used the same — at least <em>strand</em> and <em>sand</em> are the same in all three languages.  From this, together with the rarity of the Swedish and Danish versions, I guess they arose independently as ad hoc translations of the more well-established <a href="https://chess.stackexchange.com/a/39248/1976">German version</a> — translating it requires changing the noun, since the direct cognate of <em>Schand</em> in all the Scandinavian languages is <em>skam</em>, which wouldn’t rhyme.</p>
 32070: <p><strong>Italian</strong></p>
<p>Cavallo sul bordo,</p>
<p>Spettacolo balordo</p>
<p>Literally, “a knight on the rim is an awkward spectacle”</p>
 9179: <p>The Spanish version is not the most elegant one, but there it goes:</p>
<p>&quot;Con los caballos por los rincones</p>
<p>vas a ganar por los cojones&quot;</p>
<p>Perfect consonant rhyme, which can be (liberally) translated as &quot;placing your knights int he dims, you won't win at all&quot;.</p>
<p>The thing is that &quot;por los cojones&quot; refers in a very colloquial way to human male gonads. Also, &quot;cojones&quot; is used in a lot of Spanish idioms.</p>
<p><a href="https://elpais.com/diario/2001/12/07/deportes/1007679616_850215.html" rel="noreferrer">Here</a> you have an article (most probably by <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leontxo_Garc%C3%ADa" rel="noreferrer">Leontxo García</a>) using a variant of the sentence in a 2001 game between Shirov and Anand.</p>
 32065: <p>In French, I have heard &quot;Cavalier au bord, cavalier mort&quot; (&quot;a knight on the rim is a dead knight&quot;).</p>
 23330: <h3>Russian</h3>
<p>Конь на краю — позор на голову твою.</p>
<p>Literally, &quot;a knight on the rim is a shame onto your head&quot;.</p>
<p>Transliterated: &quot;kon' na krayu — pozor na golovu tvoyu&quot;.</p>
<p>The Russian version is just a translation of the phrase by Siegbert Tarrasch. The &quot;на голову твою&quot; part is unnecessary for the meaning (it's just an intensifier), but added for the rhyme.</p>
 32023: <p><strong>German</strong></p>
<p>Ein Springer am Rand bringt Kummer und Schand.</p>
<p>= (lit.): A knight on the rim brings sorrow and shame.</p>
