Rook - straightforward
King - lazy
Queen - protective (for her better half 
)
Knight - someone that overcomes the obstacles of life, liberated
Bishop - thinks out of the box, alternate ways
Pawns - weak, confident, united, sacrificing (most among other pieces)
King - Regal
Queens - Frightfully Arrogant
Bishops - Sly, Cunning and Corrupt
Knights - Tough, Violent and Confrontational
Pawns - Weak, Loyal and Sacrificing
What about the Rook?
Protective is pretty good for queen, even without adding for her better half, because any piece can make her run away (so she always has to look out for herself).
Also I like mapearson's if queen was "frightful and arrogant" hehe
Good point 
Rooks - Imposing, Protective and Direct (and really really annoying*)
*just been beaten in endgame by a Rook so perhaps a little biased
Haha, nice I'm likin what I'm seeing, feel free to get more creative with it though if you want too, like maybe the dynamics of how they work together (I'd guess the knight and bishop, kind of love/hate realtionship, as the bishop usally ends up aiding from a far while the knight does most of the dirty work, though both willing to sacrifice themselves for sucess (with the bishop being more pragmatic and cautious, as well as maddly whimsical -like harlequin- while the knights bold and full throttle, ready to tear through danger while both are ready to sow choas or launch pin point accurate attacks/sacs)
knight tricky and confusing
King- Leader
Queen- Governing
Rook- Peripherally challenged
Bishop- Kiss-up
Knight- Sly/Deceitful
Pawn- Weak-minded
How about differences in character between different pawns?
A-pawn - shy and edgy
B-pawn - likes to embarrass enemy pieces by suddenly making the 2-square jump
C-pawn - always frustrated as he's just off the center (so bullies the enemy D-pawn continually)
D-pawn - confident as the big lady protects him
E-pawn - the eternal 'why me?' guy on the first move of open games
F-pawn - the risk taker, the guy who shouldn't have moved off of f2
G-pawn - if this isn't a fianchetto or some theoretical Sicilian attacking move, it was probably an error
H-pawn - the 'amateur-move' pawn
- - - - - - - - - -
It's possible to differentiate character according to the exact square, for example
a2 is really the shy guy in the corner, while a3 is the 'you won't come in' tough doorman, or 'the question-putter', and so on, and so forth
dude, i love the pawn personalities xD
King: Careful, prudent
Queen: Fearless, multi-tasking
Rook: Secret Service agent
Bishop: Cunning
Knight: Bold, perhaps brash
Pawn: Hard-working everyman
@solskytz: I love your description of the e-Pawn! 
Pawn. Very intelligent, as witnessed by its construction of a cloning device;
Rebellious due to the consistent gambiting tactics its/their leader employs.
Paranoid, which explains the limited use of the cloning device overall (fearing that if, say, the bishop is cloned seven times they will take over and introduce tyranny)
Knight. Though less disposable as a pawn, they are only somewhat faster and are terrible navigators. A knight feels a sense of superiority over the pawns, but nevertheless competes with them: he does not want to see a pawn at the end of his journey (race).
He is not intelligent and knows that if the king discovers how intelligent the pawns actually are, then he will be the bottom rung; hence, he spends day and night trying to figure out small tricks to entertain and ultimately distract the king with.
Bishop. An excellent student, the bishop can navigate perfectly. He will follow every order the king gives exactly. He views the pawns as dropouts, who should not be allowed into battle. Of course, he never associates with the over-adorned knights; this results from jealousy since he never gets praised for his work.
Rook. The rooks have aggressive tendencies and so are usually the go-to warriors. They get the job done quickly and efficiently. They view the knights as the crackpots of war since they believe real warriors actually reach their target, not 30 degrees off-sides. There is constant friction between rook and bishop, erupting in arguments about which way is north.
However, the rooks absolutely hate pawns. The pawns are so strategically challenged, the rook feels, that it is good strategy to remove one from the board.
Queen. The queen was a young prodigy and met the king-to-be in the academy. She helped him with his technique, but she was always stronger, faster, and more studious than him.
She maintains a higher social rank than all warriors, but she knows it's for the wrong reason. Thus, she has feminist tendencies and erupts majestically in war; revealing just how powerful a female is.
King. Now, here is a person who is famous for doing absolutely nothing. The king was born to royalty and works hard only toward the goal of keeping his power. He constantly goes to war, hoping that someday his rating will be respectable. On the other hand, he does not devote time to training his troops, nor does he study strategy.
He always wishes he had better warriors. However, he does respect his wife, just not in public--because of social norms and whatnot.
Pawn-One that really doesn't know much, except that other pieces rely on him. He also knows that the King is easy to sac one of his brethren, since the pawn thinks that the King sees him as easily replaced. Also quite scared when alone, usually begging for others help.
Knight-A piece that knows he has limited mobility, so is one of the first to gallop out. He sometimes doesn't realize his handicap, and can get caught in no man's land.
Bishop-A frustrated piece at times that seems to do his best work with his twin. He often wants to run about, not realizing he can only conquer the enemy on his turf.
Rook-One that shouts, "I will rule the endgame!" Until he is sometimes caught by pawn, bishop, or knight tricks.
Queen-The one that tries to keep order! If she is lost, the others usually flail around in a sad attempt to save the day.
King-A slovenly creature. The fat bastard has use of only one leg. His arrogance sometimes has him throwing many others into harms way just to save him. He has a "special" relationship with the rooks because of this. Unfortunately, all abide by his wishes because they know they will perish if Mr. One Square (they say it, just not publicly) goes down.
There is often much bickering between the pieces (yes, just like a family). Bishop and knight are always fighting as to which is more valuable (especially in threads here). "I can cover the board!", "So? I can fork!". In many wars, all the pieces will fight for the next move. Even pawns will argue with the King, thinking they should be the one to move. The King listens, because he knows they could possibly become promoted to a "smarter" piece.
1 king = boss
1 queen = first lady
1 bishop = a one eyed piece. haha
a piece that only can see half the board ever. (like a left/right eye)
1 knight = the nomad. being able to touch all squares once without touching one twice.
1 rook = The mighty yet passive "castle"
pawns a-h = The first line of defense, if played correctly, one can become a second or third lady. hahaha :)
Pawns: Not very talented and yet very ambitious bunch of people. They aspire is to advance in ranks and to get promoted. Strangely enough, many of them desire to become queens. Nobody really know actual their gender. They are fearless and know no retreat. They are highly social, and usually have very short life when left alone.
Rooks: Big, dumb blokes that require a lot of space to move about. They get pissed when someone blocks their paths. They can unleash unfanthomable fury when set loose in the enemy's camp. The enemy usually get pissed by the filthy mess these rooks left behind, and hence called them "pigs".
Knights: Very down-to-earth and yet highly skilled individuals. Unlike others, the knights do not boast about beating the crap out of some distant enemies. They focus on the tasks at hand and get them done well. These brave knights often lead the battle at the front, harassing the enemies from their outposts. Unfortunately, they also can get claustrophobic when placed at the edge or corner of the board.
Bishops: Cunning and highly intelligent folks. They are opportunistic predators that can snatch their preys and quickly disappear to the other side the board. They have many names. They often pretend to be pawns, hoping that the enemy won't notice them. Hence, they are nicknamed "the big pawns". When defending the king, they often hide behind pawns. Hence, they are called "fianchettoed bishops". They are best when operate in pairs.
Queen: Talented and highly intelligent. She is the force behind the kingdom. She runs anything from managing the royal kitchen, to the battlefield, and all the way to slitting the throat of the enemy King while he is asleep.
King: Useless and perverted old fark. He is the greatest liability on the board. When the end is near, guess what he does? He would go a great length to look for another woman!
I find ironic that some people describe the various piece types as being at odds with one another, given that we all know that a quality game cannot transpire unless all the pieces work together harmoniously--and therefore, without argument. 
I find ironic that some people describe the various piece types as being at odds with one another, given that we all know that a quality game cannot transpire unless all the pieces work together harmoniously--and therefore, without argument.
You have not seen any of my games, have you?
xkcd.com
What tyes of personality traits do you think pieces and pawns would have where they to be real people? I'm looking for both good and bad as well any other insights or opinions