The Paraulògic League: A Catalan word game phenomenon

The Poliorama Theatre in Barcelona hosted the grand final of the second Lliga del Paraulògic on 25 January, bringing to a close a competition that spanned three months and engaged nearly 8,000 participants from across the Catalan-speaking territories.

Paraulògic is a linguistic puzzle game inspired by the New York Times’ Spelling Bee, which gained popularity in Catalan at the end of 2021. It is part of the suite of games offered by VilaWeb, attracting hundreds of thousands of players, 90,000 of whom play daily.

The winner of this second edition was Javier Andrés (from Barcelona, aged 47), who clinched the title at the last moment after a closely contested face-off with Antoni Rúbies (from Vallfogona de Balaguer, aged 17), the runner-up and champion of the first edition. Aina Vicens (aged 49) from the Mallorcan town of Felanitx claimed the third place.

The event, hosted by linguist Pau Vidal and comedian Maria Rovira (Oye Sherman), combined moments of competition with activities designed for the audience. Meanwhile, the finalists demonstrated their command of Catalan through vocabulary and mental agility challenges. Susanna Sanna, the sole finalist from L’Alguer, the Catalan-speaking city of Sardinia, said, “Paraulògic is a way to feel more connected to the Catalan language. It’s fantastic, and being here with all of you is a dream come true for me.”

This year’s final introduced a new feature: four different “hives” instead of just one. Javier, Antoni, and Aina competed for the title among the top 71 players in 15-minute rounds in each “hive.” The final tested participants’ speed, creativity, and mastery of Catalan, with interactive moments involving the audience and linguistic games such as Mot-li! and Minimots.

The event attracted 400 attendees. With this grand final, the Lliga del Paraulògic once again demonstrated its strong appeal and importance as a tool for promoting the Catalan language.

The second edition of the league began on 14 October and was initially scheduled to conclude on 14 December. However, the semi-final in Valencia and the grand final were delayed due to the floods.

This edition saw nearly 8,000 players from 88 counties across the Catalan-speaking territories, surpassing participation in the first edition.

All participants competed in two online phases (local and regional levels), and to reach the final, they had to qualify in one of the five semi-finals held in Andorra, Barcelona, Palma, Perpinyà, and Valencia. The winners of the competition in L’Alguer advanced directly to the final.