This 5 YO Correctly Spelled A SANSKRIT Word And Became The Youngest To Win A Spelling Bee!

There are child prodigies and then there are child prodigies who can spell Sanskrit words and look very cute doing that.

The American National Spelling Bee Championship is very famous in India for one reason – almost every winner in the past 10 years has been an Indian-origin kid.

The youngest contestants are anywhere between 8-10 years old. But for the first time, Edith Fuller, a 5-year-old girl became the youngest to qualify for the National Championship. Edith Fuller, from Oklahoma, destroyed all the other contestants far older than her in her regionals.

 

And her winning word was – ‘Jnana’, a Sanskrit word that has been included in the English dictionary. She spelled the word like a pro as soon as she found out that it was a word with Sanskrit origin!

Jnana means knowledge in Sanskrit, or ‘gyan’ as we know it in Hindi; and even we are surprised that it was in the English dictionary!

The five-year-old Edith has never had any formal training whatsoever. Her mother is very proud of her daughter’s achievement.

“Learning the words was so educational. She was able to learn about different countries and cultures and different kinds of food.”

Even though she is a champion speller, she has the characteristics of a 5-year-old – she cannot stay at one place without getting distracted and antsy.

But she did show incredible focus for an antsy kid when she spelled all her words correctly!

 

You can see Edith Fuller’s performance of the winning word here –

We wish her all the best for the Nationals!

H/T – Distractify