Did anyone think that a game that deals with concocting words into points could be both educational and fun? The game I’m talking about is Scrabble. Scrabble, in its short history has come a long way from a game that started off as an educational tool. It is now in millions of homes worldwide and printed in 29 different languages. The Scrabble Corporation, located in New York is the overseer and do-all of the game. Out of the corporation was invented the Scrabble tournaments, stretching out from the National to International venues. So the key question to this game of the wordsmith is, “Why is it so popular?”

For years, teachers and parents tried to find a way to educate their students in ways that are fun and educational at the same time. With the game of Scrabble, you are mixing education, analytical skill, competition, and fun all at the same time. Whether or not that was the intention of the Scrabble creators is yet unknown, however, they created a phenomenon that reaches across all continents.

Evolution of the Scrabble Game

There are now official tournaments and clubs that center around this game, most notably the National Scrabble Championship (locations differ each year). Currently, there are over 10,000 clubs worldwide, and thousands of tournaments. For those who are hardcore about the game, there are even Scrabble coaches. They work as freelance individuals to shape the player into a world-class Scrabble player. There are over 1,000 active in the United States alone.

Scrabble in Pop Culture

Scrabble is mentioned in the Wedding Planner as Jennifer Lopez is a tournament player.

In Ada, a novel by Vladimir Nabokov, the main character scores 390 points on a turn including a 50-point bonus for using all her tiles.

Scrabble is also mentioned in Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy. Dent uses Scrabble tiles to figure out the meaning to the universe.

The movie Sneakers, a 1992 film about computer hackers, Robert Redford’s character uses Scrabble tiles to crack an anagram from a black box they stole.

The Finish

While it is hard to determine the intentions of the Scrabble creators, we do know that their influence will spread throughout the world in years to come. One acclaimed Sociologist once said, “Scrabble has already surpassed chess in its popularity. Chess was a bridge to negotiation and conflict. If this fire called Scrabble spreads anymore, our world could be in a better place.” That’s far reaching of course, but a game that has come into its own and has taken on a life in itself, we can only assume that its impact will stretch further and further into our culture in one form or another be it the board game itself, an offshoot thereof, in video game form, or in general conversation. Could we see a revolution? Probably not. After all, it’s just a game, right?