Generational slang vs Brainrot
Maria Carrillo student watches “Skibidi Toilet” (Natalia Woods, The Puma Prensa)
Written By: Liam Winkelman and Wyett Pinney, staff writer
Have you ever wanted to flip your wig? Or snapped your cap? Maybe even felt like the bee's knees? Probably not, as these slang words have inevitably fallen into disuse.
Slang usually develops in sub-cultures and spreads through word of mouth; but since the development of the Internet, slang has spread more rapidly and reaches more people. Examples of slang have existed for centuries, but the idea of slang as we know it has only existed for three to four generations, the oldest known slang word however is a “thieves cant” which was used by criminals to secretly plan without people understanding. This was around when more people were pursuing school and college education. These environments created communities of young people who used slang to diversify from older generations.
Slang, also known as informal language used in popular culture, can either become obsolete or become a part of daily life. An example of slang that has fallen into disuse is “Flub the Dub,” which means to avoid work. Words like this existed and died in the early 1900s. “Flub the Dub” held its relevance longer than many modern slang words; old slang's slower spread also meant it took longer to be replaced. While modern slang can be replaced or fall into disuse quicker due to the constant influx of new words from a larger variety of subcultures. Slang words also don’t need to be decades or centuries old to fall into disuse, even slang from the past twenty to thirty years have fallen into complete disuse. William Hitchcock, AP European History teacher here at Carillo, gave examples of slang from his generation, such as “don’t have a cow,” meaning don’t freak out, and “rad,” meaning cool. Both of these aren’t in everyday use anymore and have become obsolete.
Slang also usually starts in subcultures before entering into the dominant culture. For example, much modern slang originates from African American Vernacular English (AAVE), and then gets diffused into broader culture through social media. Social media also differentiates modern slang from previous generations; it rapidly increases the use of slang words and their popularity. This causes slang to get diffused faster than it used to in past generations and is “definitely overused,” says Ryan Louton, a freshman here at Carrillo. This then forms the creation of new slang to replace the time-worn slang.
So if slang as we know it has existed in culture for many generations, what is the new emergence of this phenomenon known as Brainrot? Slang can be described as words invented by groups through a reference or acronym. “Brainrot,” on the other hand, is a more recent term caused by this rapid slang that grows excessively fast on the Internet, being seen in a more negative light. Carrillo students have been impacted by this as being a part of the new generation has caused the new slang to rapidly spread throughout. Brainrot, due to this rapid spread, will probably not stick permanently, similar to slang words from past generations.
Today's slang isn’t also just phrases or acronyms that fit into a sentence and make sense. An example of this is the phrase “Are they gonna play Fein?” originating from a trend on TikTok, relating to the song by Travis Scott. These examples of slang have been generated through rapid popularity on some trends, causing influence over that generations vernacular to follow them. Senior Gabriel Murphy gave his explanation for the recent spread of Brainrot on social media. “It's a recent pop culture trend thriving on TikTok and Instagram,” explained Murphy. “It subverts people’s expectations because it doesn’t make sense.”
However, this recent “Brainrot” slang is viewed more negatively than previous generations' slang in a general and school setting. Hitchcock explained this, saying that generally “you want to use academic language, and slang isn’t considered academic.” He said that, especially in learning settings, “a lot of slang words are just acronyms” and should be used for “more casual communication.”
Slang will continue to evolve with new technologies and social groups as it has in the past, and literary styles will be with it. Its rapid evolution has changed our vocabulary for generations and will continue to do so.