<Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article needs additional citations for verification . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (November 2016) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> <P> A spelling bee is a competition in which contestants are asked to spell a broad selection of words, usually with a varying degree of difficulty . The concept is thought to have originated in the United States, and spelling bee events, along with variants, are now also held in some other countries around the world . The first winner of an official spelling bee was Frank Neuhauser, who won the 1st National Spelling Bee (now known as the Scripps National Spelling Bee) in Washington, D.C. in 1925 at age eleven . </P> <P> Historically the word bee has been used to describe a get - together for communal work, like a husking bee, a quilting bee, or an apple bee . According to etymological research recorded in dictionaries, the word probably comes from dialectal been or bean (meaning "help given by neighbors"), which came from Middle English bene (meaning "prayer", "boon" and "extra service by a tenant to his lord"). </P> <P> The earliest known evidence of the phrase spelling bee in print dates back to 1850, although an earlier name, spelling match, has been traced back to 1808 . A key impetus for the contests was Noah Webster's spelling books . First published in 1786 and known colloquially as "The Blue - backed Speller," Webster's spelling books were an essential part of the curriculum of all elementary school children in the United States for five generations . Now the key reference for the contests is the Webster's Third New International Dictionary . </P>

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