View source for Brain rot

{{Short description|Poor quality online content}}

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{{Wiktionary|brain rot}}
In [[Internet culture]], '''brain rot''' (or '''brainrot''') refers to any Internet content deemed to be of low quality or value, or the supposed negative psychological and cognitive effects caused by it.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Roy |first=Jessica |date=2024-06-13 |title=If You Know What 'Brainrot' Means, You Might Already Have It |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/13/style/brainrot-internet-addiction-social-media-tiktok.html |access-date=2024-08-26 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The term also refers to excessive use of digital media, especially short-form entertainment,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Why teenagers are deliberately seeking brain rot on TikTok {{!}} Psyche Ideas |url=https://psyche.co/ideas/why-teenagers-are-deliberately-seeking-brain-rot-on-tiktok |access-date=2024-11-13 |website=Psyche |language=en}}</ref> which [[Digital media use and mental health|may affect cognitive health]].{{medical citation needed|date=December 2024}} The term originated within the online cultures of [[Generation Alpha]] and [[Generation Z]], but has since become mainstream.<ref name="memes" />

The term was named [[Oxford Word of the Year]] in 2024, beating other words like ''[[demure]]'' and ''[[Romantic fantasy|romantasy]]''.<ref name="memes" /><ref name="woty">{{cite web |author= |date=2 December 2024 |year= |title=‘Brain rot’ named Oxford Word of the Year 2024 |url=https://corp.oup.com/news/brain-rot-named-oxford-word-of-the-year-2024/ |access-date=2 December 2024 |website=[[Oxford University Press]] |publisher= |location=Oxford}}</ref> Its modern usage is defined by the ''[[Oxford University Press]]'' as "the supposed deterioration of a person's mental or intellectual state, especially viewed as the result of overconsumption of material (now particularly online content) considered to be trivial or unchallenging".<ref name="memes" />

== Origin and usage ==
According to ''[[Oxford University Press]]'', the first recorded use of the term traces back to the 1854 book ''[[Walden]]'' by [[Henry David Thoreau]].<ref name=woty/> Thoreau was criticizing what he saw as a decline in intellectual standards, with complex ideas being less highly regarded, and compared this to the [[European potato failure|1840s "potato rot" in Europe]].<ref name="memes">{{cite web |last=Rufo |first=Yasmin |year=2024 |title=Losing your mind looking at memes? The dictionary has a word for that |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx2n2r695nzo |website=[[BBC]] |publisher=}}</ref>

In online settings, it was used as early as 2004. In 2007, the term "brain rot" was used by Twitter users to describe [[dating game show]]s, video games and "hanging out online".<ref name="sbs">{{Cite web |last=Prema |first=Shivé |date=8 February 2024 |title=What is 'brain rot'? Do you have it? |url=https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/what-is-brain-rot-do-you-have-it/39fexbr4u |access-date=2024-08-26 |website=SBS News |language=en}}</ref> Usage of the phrase increased online in the 2010s before becoming rapidly more popular in 2023, when it became an [[internet meme]].<ref name="sbs" /> In 2024, it is most frequently used in the context of [[Generation Alpha]]'s digital habits, by critics expressing that the generation is "[[Extremely online|excessively immersed in online culture]]".<ref>{{Cite web |last=North |first=Anna |date=2024-09-05 |title=iPad kids speak up |url=https://www.vox.com/life/369953/skibidi-tweens-gen-alpha-brainrot-ipad-kids |access-date=2024-09-16 |website=Vox |language=en-US}}</ref> It is commonly associated with an individual's vocabulary consisting exclusively of internet references.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Roy |first=Jessica |date=June 13, 2024 |title=If You Know What 'Brainrot' Means, You Might Already Have It |website=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/13/style/brainrot-internet-addiction-social-media-tiktok.html }}</ref> From 2023 to 2024, the term increased by 230% in frequency per million words.<ref name=memes/><ref name=woty />

The term is often linked with slang and trends popular among Generation Alpha and Generation Z, such as "skibidi" (a reference to the YouTube shorts series ''[[Skibidi Toilet]]''), "[[rizz]]" (short for charisma), "[[gyat|gyatt]]" (referring to the buttocks), "[[fanum tax]]" (stealing food), "[[Sigma male|sigma]]" (referring to a leader or alpha male), and "[[delulu]]" (short for delusional).<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-08-10 |title=Parents and Gen Alpha kids are having unintelligible convos because of 'brainrot' language |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/gen-alpha-kids-parents-brainrot-language-rcna162227 |access-date=2024-09-16 |website=NBC News |language=en}}</ref> Some online content are commonly labelled "brainrot", such as the web series ''[[Skibidi Toilet]].<ref name="woty" />''<ref>{{Cite web |last=Press-Reynolds |first=Kieran |date=25 June 2024 |title=How brainrot humour infected the internet with surreal gibberish |url=https://www.dazeddigital.com/life-culture/article/62947/1/how-brainrot-humour-infected-the-internet-with-surreal-gibberish-tiktok-skibidi |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240626103639/https://www.dazeddigital.com/life-culture/article/62947/1/how-brainrot-humour-infected-the-internet-with-surreal-gibberish-tiktok-skibidi |archive-date=26 June 2024 |access-date=26 June 2024 |website=[[Dazed]] |language=en}}</ref> Other examples of popular brain rot are memes such as the TikTok Rizz Party and Quandale Dingle, which utilise the slang mentioned above.<ref>{{cite web |title=TikTok Rizz Party Analysis |url=https://veniceoarsman.com/14617/showcase/tiktok-rizz-party-analysis/ |website=The Oarsman |access-date=6 December 2024 |date=29 April 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Everything you need to know about the ‘Quandale Dingle’ meme |url=https://www.dailydot.com/news/quandale-dingle-meme/ |website=The Daily Dot |access-date=6 December 2024 |date=29 April 2024}}</ref>

In 2024, [[Millennials|millennial]] Australian senator [[Fatima Payman]] made headlines by making a short speech to the [[Australian parliament]] using Generation Alpha slang. She introduced the speech as addressing "an oft-forgotten section of our society", referring to Generations Z and Alpha, and said that she would "render the remainder of my statement using language they're familiar with".<ref>{{cite web |title='Skibidi': Payman opposes social age limit in speech to gen Z and gen Alpha |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQi9uFPEOWY |website=YouTube |access-date=13 November 2024 |date=11 September 2024}}</ref> Using slang terms, Payman criticised the government's plans to ban under-14s from social media and closed by saying that, "Though some of you cannot yet vote, I hope that, when you do, it will be in a more goated Australia for a government with more aura. Skibidi!"<ref name="dd">{{Cite web |last=Weedston |first=Lindsey |date=2024-09-13 |title=Fatima Payman Gen Z Slang Speech Declared 'Brainrot' |url=https://www.dailydot.com/memes/fatima-payman-gen-z-slang-speech/ |access-date=2024-09-16 |website=The Daily Dot |language=en-US}}</ref> The speech, written by a 21-year-old staff member, was labeled by some as an example of "brainrot" outside the online world.<ref name="dd"/>

== See also ==
* {{annotated link|Digital media use and mental health}}
* {{annotated link|Enshittification}}
* {{annotated link|Glossary of Generation Z slang}}
* {{annotated link|Low culture}}
* {{annotated link|Shitposting}}
* {{annotated link|Sludge content}}
* {{annotated link|Slop (artificial intelligence)}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

[[Category:Internet culture]]
[[Category:Internet memes introduced in 2023]]
[[Category:Internet terminology]]


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[[Category:Internet memes]]