Which specific opening being played on the board depends on the moves of both players.
Help needed with chess terms

If you're a new chess player and you're studying an obscure line of the English Opening, you're probably spending too much time studying openings. Your time would probably be better spent studying tactics and only general opening principles.
But to try to answer your question, White chooses the English Opening by playing 1. c4. Black, in turn, chooses a Scandinavian-type defense by playing 1...d5. I'm not sure about the "queen's knight variation" part of it. (I'm not familiar with this variation.)

Funny trick question, I like it. Are you playing white or black?
Urkel! Howz it hangin', dude?

Funny trick question, I like it. Are you playing white or black?
Hi Urkel, it's not a trick question. It doesn't matter what I play, white or black, I'm asking when a term is expressed like that, what does it mean? I have not and will not play any of them, but I'd like to know what it expresses as all openings I see are expressed in thatway.

Which specific opening being played on the board depends on the moves of both players.
Hey Larsenite, yes I know that, it's why I never asked that question. My question is as above. If you can answer it, please do. If not, thanks for your time anyway.

Funny trick question, I like it. Are you playing white or black?
Hi Urkel, it's not a trick question. It doesn't matter what I play, white or black, I'm asking when a term is expressed like that, what does it mean? I have not and will not play any of them, but I'd like to know what it expresses as all openings I see are expressed in thatway.
No need for a serious response to Urkel. He signed up today, and it's clear he's a troll account that probably won't be here very long. :)

If you're a new chess player and you're studying an obscure line of the English Opening, you're probably spending too much time studying openings. Your time would probably be better spent studying tactics and only general opening principles.
But to try to answer your question, White chooses the English Opening by playing 1. c4. Black, in turn, chooses a Scandinavian-type defense by playing 1...d5. I'm not sure about the "queen's knight variation" part of it. (I'm not familiar with this variation.)
Hi EscherehcsE, I'm not studying such obscure openings, was just practicing random openings on MEMCHESS (a really nice little site if you don't know it) and they have the openings written up like that. But it's not clear what refers to who or if it all refers to one player.I looked around the web but it's always expressed the same. Most sites even use a colon which then makes me think that all is related to the same side.
Here's a simple one:
Caro Kann defence: accelerated Panov attack.
Now, the Panov attack is part of black's game. It's not the Caro Kann against a Panov attack by white.
So if that is the case then:
English Opening: Anglo-Scandinavian Defense, queen's knight variation.
would all refer to white's opening. So, like the Caro Kann above, this would be White playing an English opening with an Ango-Scandinavian defense incorporated into it.
I just need to know, when these openings are expressed like this (and almost everywhere i checked they are expressed like this) what they mean. It doesn't matter if they are obscure or well known as they are frmulated the same. Thanks fotr your time already, it's appreciated.

English Opening: Anglo-Scandinavian Defense, queen's knight variation
"Openings" are normally played by White.
"Defenses" are normally played by Black.
"Variations" can be either by White or by Black, the word itself gives no clue which side is initiating the line.
For instance, the Sicilian Defense is a line often played by Black against the King's Pawn; and the Sozin Variation (of the Sicilian) is initiated by White while the Najdorf Variation (a popular line in the Sicilian) is initiated by Black. The term "variation" is... so to speak... ambidexterous.

"The name is English Opening: Anglo-Scandinavian Defense, queen's knight variation.
Does this mean that I am white and I'm playing the English opening with an anglo-scandinavian defense against black?"
I ask again, are you white or black? You didn't list moves and tell us if you were white or black to start with.
I don't need to write out the moves as they are not important. The question is about understanding the writing and what it means not the moves. I'm not playing black or white, i just want to know when an opening isexpressed as above, what does it mean. If you don't know it's fine to say. I don't know myself.

White is playing English opening(1.c4) Black responds with AngloScandinavian defense(1...d5) and I don't know what is "queen's knight variation".
In the example you give, the name is part of both players first moves.That usually happens in rare openings.In the most common openings the name of the variation is result of many moves.
For example:
French defense advance variation : Black plays French defense(1...e6) , White responds with advance variation(3.e5).
Caro Kan , Panov Botvinnik attack :Black plays Caro Kan(1...c6) , white responds with Panov Botvinnik attack(4.c4).
That happens because not all moves define an opening or a line.
When white plays 1.e4 you don't have an opening yet.Black's moves decide the opening
So after 1.e4 , 1...e6 , 1...c6 , 1...c5 have names but 1...e5 does not have a name and it's now up to white to choose the name.
But again there are moves that define an opening and moves that don't.So 2.f4 is King's gambit , 2.Nc3 is Vienna , 2.Bc4 is Bishop's opening but 2.Nf3 is still nothing.
Black again gets the chance to define the opening and 2...d6 is Philidor's defense , 2...Nf6 is Petroff's defense but 2...Nc6 is nothing.
White gets the chance to define the opening.He can play 3.Bc4 (Italian) or 3.Bb5 (Spanish or as most called it , Ruy Lopez) or 3.Nc3 that can lead to either 3 knights or 4 knights opening depending on what Black will repsond.
Let's assume that white chooses 3.Bb5 , it is Spanish but do you think it's over?Oh no it's not , it's not that easy.The main opening has been defined but the variation hasn't.
3...Nge7 is Cozio defense , 3...Nd4 is Bird defense ,3...d6 is Steinitz but 3...a6 is nothing yet.
To make the long story short this "name game" might be played for several moves.In Ruy Lopez the variation might be defined on move 9 or later and the name contains various information.
For example:
Ruy Lopez , Zaitsev Variation defines the first 9 moves.
For a beginner though all these are irrelevant and pretty much insignificant. No one tried to learn the names , we studied chess and one day we knew them.Focus in what matters and that is not the opening.
Afternoon DeirdreSkye and thank you for your answer and the time it must have taken to write it up. What you say is how I initially took it, but then, formuated the same way is:
Caro Kann defence, accelerated Panov attack.
Which then threw everything into confusion again as the Panov attack is a black line, not white's attack on the Caro Kann.
I wanted to cntact the site owner but there was no contact form or details. Maybe they have formulated the openings in a cinfusing or inconsistent way.
PS: Don't worry about my chess health, I'm not planning a nasty suicide wit any of these little known openings. Was just having fun on MemChess and wondered what was eferring to what. I don't want to be asked a question one day like What is your favourite whte opening? and respond: The French defense, using Jean-Paul Le Pen right-wing variation.
Hey everyone, I'm a new chess player and will have many questions that more experienced players may be able to help me with. I'll post each question, apart from this one, under a sep[erate post.
Question #1:
I've been studying chess openings before playing anyone and i'm confused over the names and who is playing what. For example, I'm learning an English opening variation. The name is English Opening: Anglo-Scandinavian Defense, queen's knight variation.
Does this mean that I am white and I'm playing the English opening with an anglo-scandinavian defense against black?
Or
White is playing the English opening and black is using the anglo-scandinavian defence in response?
It may be obvious if you know, but for me it isn't so thank you anyone who replies.