Shax is one popular name for a game played throughout much of the Somali inhabited regions of the Horn of Africa.With its origins dating back centuries, it is still popular today. While in the northern regions of Somalia it is known as shax, in the central andsouthern regions it is called jar (literally meaning "cut").
Shax is similar to the game Nine Men's Morris and uses the same board. However, in Shax, mills formed during placement do not immediately result in the removal of opposing pieces. When placement is finished, if any mills have been formed, the player who formed the first one may remove one opposing piece, and the other player may do the same whether they formed a mill or not. Play then continues as before. If no mills were formed during placement, the second player to move during placement is the first to move after it.
In the nomadic areas it is played mainly by the older men with few day to day responsibilities. In the city it is played by older men but also by younger men who are unemployed. One public notice incentral Mogadishu exhorts such people saying "jaraystoow jinkaa ku dhaaf" - you players of jare,your generation has left you (i.e get moving and do something). Shax is played exclusively by men.One Somali male player of shax has offered the following explanation:"
First, women keep aloof from playing it perhaps because, like chess, it stands for war and thus calls for a quick and sharp mind to conduct tactical and strategic planning.
Secondly, this may be so because, like all games, it is a time killer and women hardly afford, at least in the good old traditions, the luxury to let time pass-by unutilised."
Although it is only a two person game, in practice it often involves many more. Observers usually hover nearby, offering advice and often even making moves for the players, sometimes even without consulting them. The games are played very quickly by "professionals" and more slowly by"amateurs".