National Geographic Bee
Year Winner 's Name State Grade Final Question Answer Notes
1989 Jack Staddon Kansas Eighth Name the flat intermontane area located at an elevation of about 10,000 feet ( 3,050 m ) in the central Andes Altiplano First champion First Kansas champion
1990 Susannah Batko-Yovino Pennsylvania Sixth Mount Erebus is a volcano on which continent ? Antarctica First female champion First Pennsylvania champion
1991 David Stillman Idaho Eighth What type of landform is commonly associated with orographic precipitation ? Mountain First Idaho champion Had a perfect score in the finals
1992 Lawson Fite Washington Eighth Many coastal countries have established so-called EEZs - areas extending 200 nautical miles ( 370 km ) from shore over which countries have sovereign rights for resource exploration . What do the initials EEZ stand for ? Exclusive Economic Zone First Washington champion Had a perfect score in the finals
1993 Noel Erinjeri Michigan Eighth Tagalog is one of the three main native languages of which island country in Asia ? The Philippines First Michigan champion Was in the finals in 1992 ( finished 4th )
1994 Anders Knospe Montana Eighth The Tagus River roughly divides which European country into two agricultural regions , grain and potatoes in the north , and grapes in the south ? Portugal First Montana Champion
1995 Chris Galeczka Michigan Eighth Pashtu and Dari are the official languages of which mountainous , landlocked country in southwestern Asia ? Afghanistan Second Michigan champion Was in the finals in 1994
1996 Seyi Fayanju New Jersey Seventh Name the European co-principality whose heads of state are the President of France and the Bishop of Urgell Andorra First New Jersey champion Had a perfect score in the finals ; presented an object in the 1994 finals , when he was the New Jersey state champion ; was a contestant on the kids game show Figure It Out
1997 Alex Kerchner Washington Seventh Asia 's most densely populated country has about three million people and an area of less than 250 square miles ( 402 km² ) . Name this country Singapore Second Washington champion Was in the finals in 1996 ( finished 4th )
1998 Petko Peev Michigan Eighth More than 80 million people live in the European Union 's most populous member country . Name this country Germany Third Michigan champion
1999 David Beihl South Carolina Eighth ( homeschooled ) The condition characterized by unusually cold ocean temperature in the equatorial region of the eastern Pacific Ocean is known by what Spanish name ? La Niña First South Carolina champion First home-schooled champion ; competed in 1999 Scripps National Spelling Bee championship later in the same month
2000 Felix Peng Connecticut Eighth Name two of the three largest sections of Denmark , which include its mainland peninsula and two largest islands Jutland , Sjaelland and Fyn First Connecticut champion Won after 7 tiebreaker questions in the Championship Round , the all-time record . In addition , the 2nd-place finisher that year , George Thampy , ended up winning the Scripps National Spelling Bee that year
2001 Kyle Haddad-Fonda Washington Eighth Below the equilibrium line of glaciers there is a region of melting , evaporation , and sublimation . Name this zone Zone of ablation Third Washington champion Rhodes Scholar , Harvard graduate ; Was in the finals in 1999
2002 Calvin McCarter Michigan Fifth ( homeschooled ) Lop Nur , a marshy depression at the east end of the Tarim Basin , is a nuclear test site for which country ? China ( People 's Republic ) Fourth Michigan champion Youngest champion This year marked the first time that a competitor in the championship round caught up after falling behind . Calvin lost his one-point lead , but later regained it
2003 James Williams Washington Eighth ( homeschooled ) Goa , a state in southwestern India , was a possession of which country until 1961 ? Portugal Fourth Washington champion Also a competitor in the National Middle School Science Bowl and National Science Olympiad
2004 Andrew Wojtanik Kansas Eighth Peshawar , a city in the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan , has had strategic importance for centuries because of its location near what historic pass ? Khyber Pass Second Kansas champion Wrote Afghanistan to Zimbabwe guide with important information for each country
2005 Nathan Cornelius Minnesota Seventh ( homeschooled ) Lake Gatún , an artificial lake that constitutes part of the Panama Canal system , was created by damming which river ? Chagres River First Minnesota champion
2006 Bonny Jain Illinois Eighth Name the mountains that extend across much of Wales , from the Irish Sea to the Bristol Channel Cambrian Mountains First Illinois champion Placed 13th in 2006 Scripps National Spelling Bee ; was in the finals in 2005
2007 Caitlin Snaring Washington Eighth ( homeschooled ) A city that is divided by a river of the same name was the imperial capital of Vietnam for more than a century . Name this city , which is still an important cultural center Huế Second female champion Fifth Washington champion Had a perfect score in the finals
2008 Akshay Rajagopal Nebraska Sixth The urban area of Cochabamba has been in the news recently due to protests over the privatization of the municipal water supply and regional autonomy issues . Cochabamba is the third-largest conurbation in what country ? Bolivia First Nebraska champion Had a perfect score in the finals . Won the Bee on his first attempt at the school , state , and national level
Champions -- National Champions
Of the thirty-one National Geographic GeoBee champions , twenty-nine have been male and two were female . Five are from the state of Washington , five are from Texas , four are from the state of Michigan , two are from Kansas , two are from New Jersey , two are from Florida , and various other states have been home to one champion each .
The National Geographic GeoBee (called the National Geography Bee from 1989-2000 and the National Geographic Bee from 2001-2018, also referred to as the Nat Geo Bee) is an annual geography contest sponsored by the National Geographic Society. The bee, held every year since 1989, is open to students in the fourth through eighth grades in participating schools from the United States. The entities represented at the national level come from all fifty U.S. states, all the territories, the Department of Defense Dependents Schools (DoDDS), and the District of Columbia. The National Geographic Bee Finals was moderated by Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek for its first 25 years (1989-2013). However, at the 2013 National Geographic Bee, Trebek announced that 2013 would be his last year hosting the Finals. Newscaster Soledad O'Brien took his place the following year, moderating the bee in 2014 and 2015. O'Brien was then replaced by Mo Rocca in 2016 and Rocca has been moderating the Bee since then. The current champion is Nihar Janga, from Canyon Ridge Middle School in Austin, Texas. He is the 31st Champion.