What is a meme & what does it mean?

The modern-day definition of a meme is a humorous image, video, piece of text, or GIF that is spread across the internet, typically on social media, and often with slight variations. Memes can be created by anyone and can be about anything, from current events, to mundane tasks, to pop culture references. The length of a meme varies.

Why did Richard Dawkins call it a “meme”?

Dawkins referred to it as a “Mimeme”—a word derived from Greek that means “that which is imitated.” The word was then abbreviated to just “meme” due to its similarity to the word “gene.” Dawkins coined the term because he was trying to figure out whether there was a measurable unit describing how ideas spread and propagated through generations.

When was meme first used?

In fact, author Richard Dawkins first used the word in his 1976 work The Selfish Gene. The book looked at evolution and used meme to describe an idea or behavior that spreads across people in a culture. When someone says meme nowadays, they're probably referring to an internet meme.

How do you pronounce a meme?

Now, you might be wondering how to pronounce the word meme. The correct pronunciation is meem (rhymes with dream). The modern-day definition of a meme is a humorous image, video, piece of text, or GIF that is spread across the internet, typically on social media, and often with slight variations.