Scrabble - North America: Resources
Scrabble has become a household word world-wide. As many sources of information exist as there are players. Websites dedicated to Scrabble players have popped up on the internet and have been around long before the internet. A Google search for Scrabble returns numerous links to a myriad of sites dedicated to Scrabble play. One such organization is North America's National Scrabble Association.
There are official word lists and even an official Scrabble dictionary. Both are assembled by the National Scrabble Association (NSA) consulting the Merriam-Webster brand dictionary. The Merriam-Webster Collegiate dictionary is considered the ultimate source from which the NSA draws it's word lists.
The NSA is considered the definitive source for North American game play and is operated as such. The NSA consists of a governing body with elected officials. The NSA is divided into separate committees: the rules committee, an advisory board, a technology committee, ratings committee, Tourneyman Task Force, a dictionary committee, and pairings committee. It has been in existence for over 60 years, celebrating it's 60th year in 2006. Through the NSA members can obtain copies of both the Official Tournament and Club Word List (OWL) and the Official Scrabble Players Dictionary (OSPD).
Until recently, membership in the NSA was required to access either the OWL or the OSPD. Recently the NSA began releasing the OSPD to the general public. The OWL contains words that are approved for tournament use and drawn from the Official Scrabble Players Dictionary. The most recent edition of OWL contains over 178,000 words. Additionally, there is an 'Official Long Words List'. This list contains acceptable ten to fifteen letter words that are not currently included in the OSPD.
The NSA is very much involved in the marketing of Scrabble. The NSA has it's own website. The website lists the various sponsored tournaments and offers signup rosters and such. In addition to this information, the OWL and OSPD. For the more serious Scrabble fan, the NSA offers a limited variety of apparel: mainly hats, shirts and ties. The NSA sponsors tournaments year round, and annually hold a tournament in a major U.S. city. This tournament culminates in a "Best of Five" tournament broadcast on ESPN. In addition to it's sponsorship of Scrabble tournaments, the NSA has participated in the educational process through it's school Scrabble program. The school Scrabble program not only assists in the educational process, it provides another generation for Scrabble play.
An alternative source for Scrabble play is the Internet Scrabble Club (ISC). This club requires members to connect to a server to play. This allows the more serious players to play Scrabble and chat with each other without interruption from the less serious players. In order to participate, users are required to download their interface program. Registration is also required. Clubs such as these have posted their own 'rules of conduct' for players, to ensure smooth operation. The ISC complies with all regulations promulgated by the NSA.
More information on Scrabble can be found through Hasbro's Scrabble web page. Ordering information can be found there.
Scrabble
A Brief Overview Of Scrabble Playing Associations
Scrabble
... Although it isn't usually a good idea to place a lot of focus on the word "educational" when communicating with children, Scrabble is definitely a board game that is a very useful and helpful educational tool. To the children, however, it's best to keep the focus on the fact that Scrabble is fun. Scrabble ...
... more to your liking. Scrabulous is another very popular online Scrabble resource. It provides a variety of game-playing options, so everyone can find the form that suits them the best. While it contains the usual type of online Scrabble, there are also a number of other forms available. Scrabble fans ...
... (live), through Electronic Mail (Email) or in it's original form using the game board. Entire organizations, social clubs, and networks have been formed by Scrabble enthusiasts worldwide. One hasn't far to look to find someone somewhere playing Scrabble. Numerous tournaments are played year round across ...
... popularity of the internet combined with the popularity of gaming, it's no surprise that board games have made their way into cyber space. There are a lot of board games that have existed that will never see it's first Mb transferred across cyber space. Scrabble is not one of them. Scrabble first made ...
... at elementary, middle, and high schools; on college campuses; in community centers and libraries all around the United States. In these places you may come together with people you already know, or meet many new people who are all there for the same purpose: playing and enjoying the game of Scrabble! ...