Coastin Carl
🔠 National SCRABBLE Day ORIGIN & HISTORY
If there was one thing my mother-in-law Carol was fond of, it was the game Scrabble. On National SCRABBLE Day let’s look back on the history of the game. Do you like the game of Scrabble? If the answer is yes then today is the day to get friends and family interested in a game of Scrabble. You could also have a challenging game of Scrabble with other people online. Either way, National SCRABBLE Day which is celebrated on the 13th Day in April can offer good bonding time with people you know or be a way to socialize with outsiders.
How to PLAY: SCRABBLE Basics
There are 2 to 4 players. The game board has 225 tile blocks. Some tiles on the board have double letter and triple letter points with double and triple word points. First, start with seven letter tiles. The letters also have points assigned to them with a marking. Next, go through the game creating words on the board in a fashion similar to crossword puzzles.
When it’s your turn after making a word, you get to replenish your seven letters and continue until all the tiles have been used. In the end, tally up the number of points earned and the player with the highest points wins. It’s a challenging game of strategy.
A little HISTORY behind SCRABBLE
After the depression in 1929 Alfred M Butts, an out-of-work architect with an affinity for anagrams and crosswords came up with the idea of Scrabble in 1931. The game was first called CrissCross. He made several attempts to sell his idea but unfortunately had little success. He did however manage to get CrissCross to a man named James Brunot who was able to market the game under the new name Scrabble in 1954. Today Scrabble is one of the number one rated board games in the United States. National Scrabble Day coincides with Alfred M Butts Birthdate which is April 13, 1899.
🤔 HOW to Celebrate & Observe National SCRABBLE Day?
Not sure how to LOVE the day? We’ve got a few interesting ideas to consider that may help get you started.
Here are some activities that you can do on National SCRABBLE Day!
💙 PLAY Scrabble
Get some friends or family members together for a fun game of Scrabble. You could also play Scrabble for free online with other people and find a way to socialize and do something good to support brain health.
💙 ENCOURAGE children to play Scrabble
Get youngsters involved in playing the Junior version of Scrabble. This can help learn vocabulary prefixes and suffixes of words and the origin of root words.
💙 CRAFT ideas
For a fun craft, DIY.com has some neat Scrabble craft ideas.
💙 RAISE Social Awareness
Use social media posts with the hashtags #NationalScrabbleDay, #ScrabbleDay, #Scrabble, #BoardGames, #Words, #FunHolidays, #AprilHolidays, #Holiday, #FindADayToLOVE, #iHEARTdays to support the importance of celebrating, promoting, and sharing with the world why you ❤️ National SCRABBLE Day.
LEARN more about the importance of SCRABBLE
HOW TO PLAY SCRABBLE
SUBSTANTIAL HISTORY OF SCRABBLE
NINE Fun Facts you never knew about National SCRABBLE Day
- Scrabble was invented by an architect named Alfred Mosher Butts in 1938, during the Great Depression.
- The meaning of Scrabble comes from the words: to scratch, scrape, or scrawl.
- The original name was “Lexico” but later changed to “Criss-Cross Words” before finally being called Scrabble 🙂
- The very first order for Scrabble board games was by Macy’s president after he played one while he was on vacation.
- You can make 105 two-letter words which actually count as points in Scrabble.
- There are numerous Scrabble tournaments held all across North America open to school-aged students including the North American SCRABBLE Championship.
- Some of the top words for winning Scrabble are qi, za, xu, phoney, hook, zlotty, retinas, gyoza, and bingo among others.
- Scrabble was banned in Romania by Nicolae Ceausescu for being a game that was “overly intellectual” and a “subversive evil”. In the words of our Romanian friend named Mardale: Scrabble was not considered “very BEAUTIFUL!”.
- Scrabble is available in over 120 different languages, including Klingon & Esperanto.
Famous PEOPLE also born on April 13th
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Thomas Jefferson
The 3rd President of the United States best known for being the principal author of the Declaration of Independence. He founded the University of Virginia and was the only two-term president to never veto a bill. Born 1743.
THOMAS JEFFERSON Quote
“Walking is the best possible exercise. Habituate yourself to walk very far.”
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Garry Kasparov
Russian chess grandmaster who began playing chess at age six and is best known for first playing and defeating IBM’s Deep Blue computer. Born 1963.
GARRY KASPAROV Quote
“Typically, however, the winner is just the player who made the next-to-last mistake.”
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Jonathan Brandis
American teenage actor best known for his roles in It, The Neverending Story II, seaQuest DSV, and Carla’s all-consuming infatuation. Born 1976.
JONATHAN BRANDIS Quote
“I think it’s all about how much you love, understand and can relate to the material you are given.”
Future DATES for National SCRABBLE Day
| Year | Date | Day of the Week |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | April 13 | Thursday |
| 2024 | April 13 | Saturday |
| 2025 | April 13 | Sunday |
| 2026 | April 13 | Monday |
| 2027 | April 13 | Tuesday |
🆎 Scrabble FAQ
WHEN and HOW was the game Scrabble developed?
- During the Great Depression of 1929 people came up with some ideas for board games. In 1933 Alfred Mosher Butts, an out-of-work architect, was just one of these people. His love for words helped him come up with the idea for Scrabble. He mixed anagrams and the classic crossword puzzle to invent LEXIKO which later became known as CRISS CROSS WORDS, the precursor for the brand Scrabble in 1948.
Who MAKES Scrabble?
- Hasbro manufactures Scrabble in the United States and Canada. But Mattel makes Scrabble for the rest of the world. Why is this? Mattel long wanted a real foothold into the game industry and in 1994 started a bidding war with Hasbro to buy the company that held the international rights to Scrabble since 1954. 1989 saw Hasbro purchase the US rights to Scrabble from COLECO Industries’ bankruptcy, fresh off their Cabbage Patch Doll rollercoaster. Scrabble is sold in 131 countries and is made in over 30 languages worldwide. Scrabble’s also made in braille.
Why is the game CALLED Scrabble?
- James Brunot joined as a business partner with Alfred M. Butts in 1954. He renamed Butts’ game CrissCross to the new name Scrabble. The meaning of Scrabble comes from the words to scratch, scrape, or scrawl.
Why we L💜VE National SCRABBLE Day
Scrabble is a fun and enjoyable game of word knowledge and skill. It’s a good way to pass the time and beat boredom. Playing Scrabble either online or with friends and family is a great way to socialize and bond with others. Youngsters seem to enjoy playing the game and as an added bonus it can increase language skills from learning words. Adults are not supposed to use a dictionary except for checking if a word is correct when it is being played. Kids have access to using a dictionary and can use an online Scrabble word find to help them utilize their tiles for the formation of words.
Scrabble is good for helping to relax you, combat stress, and is mentally challenging. It also helps with creativity, boosts confidence, and is beneficial for your emotional well-being. Break out your game of Scrabble for some friendly competition. You can either buy Scrabble or the junior version or go to a Scrabble online website. Here’s a chance to start thinking of having some imagination and creating descriptive and amusing words.
