O1G explained

O1G is a meme that became a political symbol of the public protests against the government leadership of Viktor Orbán of Hungary. O1G is an acronym of the country-wide popular term Hungarian: Orbán egy geci, which roughly translates to Orbán is a motherfucker in English, with Hungarian: egy meaning both one (hence the 1 in the abbreviation), as well as the article a. The word Hungarian: geci is a vulgar term for semen, widely used in slang to describe an especially unpleasant person.[1] The abbreviation has become a communication tool in international politics, after Guy Verhofstadt, the leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Group of European Parliament, used the #O1G hashtag in a Twitter message supporting the Hungarian anti-government demonstrations.[2]

Origin

The origins of the term can be traced back to "G-day"[3] when Fidesz-backed businessman and oligarch Lajos Simicska in February 2015 openly clashed with Prime Minister Viktor Orbán after several top managers of his media interests had resigned. The enraged Simicska put a strong emphasis in the interviews with several Hungarian news outlets that Orban is "jizz".[4] [5] The backdrop of the conflict was that the government, which levied a significant tax for ad revenues against media outlets with high revenues, also hit Simicska's Hír TV, which led to a struggle with Orbán's leadership. The clash of the two, which became known as the Orbán–Simicska conflict, resulted in an open political and media war,[6] and among the results were that the formerly Orbán-supporting Hír TV became one of the most important voices of opposition until the new turnaround in August 2018.[7]

Symbolical meaning

The abbreviation (O1G) appeared for the first time in December 2017 on the Internet and later, a more sophisticated, simplified symbol was launched on the commentary section of 444.hu, by an unknown graphic artist named regor,[8] which at the end of 2017 was popularized by the unknown and former graffiti artist named "Simicska of Buda", on his Facebook and Tumblr sites.[9] As a result of the December 2018 wave of protests, the O1G symbol became widely used in objection against the Orbán government and his Fidesz party-led parliament on Facebook profiles and also appeared on a number of banknotes,[10] on coins,[11] banners, sidewalk graffiti, and public light projections. Some public figures began adopting the term as a political expression, including the Belgian politician Guy Verhofstadt, leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe.[2] Its dissemination, similarly to other Internet memes, is predominantly important in various opposition political communities, while government-friendly media outlets try to remove it from the public discourse,[12] or attempt to discredit it as immoral, vulgar, and unacceptable.[13]

Appearance in popular culture

On its 2017 album, Nihilista Rock 'N' Roll, the Hungarian punk band features a song called "Geciország" (Jizzland), based on the popular anti-Orbán slogan.

See also

Sources

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Honnan jön a geci?. Where does jizz come from?. Fejes. László. nyest.hu. hu. 2015-02-09. 2018-12-19. Geci's meaning in general [in this context] is 'malicious, evil, conniving' - probably used by Simicska in this meaning as well.. 2018-12-19. https://web.archive.org/web/20181219134401/https://www.nyest.hu/hirek/honnan-jon-a-geci. live.
  2. Web site: Hungary's opposition plans more protests after 'slave law' passes. 2018-12-18. 2018-12-19. Shaun Walker. theguardian.com. 2018-12-19. https://web.archive.org/web/20181219012305/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/dec/18/hungary-opposition-plans-more-protests-after-slave-law-passes-viktor-orban. live.
  3. Web site: Fidesz set to increase its control of Hungarian media. politicalcritique.org. András Jámbor. 2016-08-31. 2018-12-19. 2023-01-19. https://web.archive.org/web/20230119205713/http://politicalcritique.org/cee/hungary/2016/fidesz-set-to-increase-its-control-of-hungarian-media/. live.
  4. Web site: Lajos Simicska: I'll fire all Orbanistas. Index.hu. Spirk József. 2015-02-16. 2018-12-19. 2018-12-26. https://web.archive.org/web/20181226032229/https://index.hu/belfold/2015/02/06/simicska_lajos_orban_egy_geci/. live.
  5. Web site: Simicska: Viktor Orbán is jizz, I'll fire all Orbanistas. HVG.hu. 2015-02-06. 2018-12-19. 2018-12-19. https://web.archive.org/web/20181219182315/https://hvg.hu/itthon/20150206_Simicska_az_Indexnek_Orban_Viktor_egy_gec. live.
  6. Web site: Hungarian oligarch turns on his former ally PM Orban. reuters.com. Krisztina Than, Marton Dunai. 2015-02-06. 2018-12-19. 2017-10-07. https://web.archive.org/web/20171007021436/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-hungary-orban/hungarian-oligarch-turns-on-his-former-ally-pm-orban-idUSKBN0LA29U20150206. live.
  7. Web site: Emboldened Viktor Orbán cracks down on friend turned foe. theguardian.com. 2018-08-12. 2018-12-19. 2018-11-16. https://web.archive.org/web/20181116091858/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/aug/12/orban-tightens-grip-on-hungary-as-oppositions-power-wanes. live.
  8. https://diogenes1001.tumblr.com/post/168402163116/a-budai-simicska-%C3%BCzemzavart-okozott-az-orb%C3%A1n-egy
  9. Web site: A Budai Simicska - O1G. Facebook. 2018-12-19. 2019-05-30. https://web.archive.org/web/20190530165705/https://www.facebook.com/budaisimicska. live.
  10. Web site: Elég drága szórólapok készülnek. 2018-12-17. 2018-12-19. Marczisovszky Márton. Index.hu. 2018-12-18. https://web.archive.org/web/20181218125533/https://index.hu/mindekozben/poszt/2018/12/17/eleg_draga_szorolapok_keszulnek/. live.
  11. Web site: Már aprón és húszezresen is pörög az O1G. 2018-12-17. 2018-12-19. Marczisovszky Márton. Index.hu. 2018-12-18. https://web.archive.org/web/20181218124316/https://index.hu/mindekozben/poszt/2018/12/17/mar_apron_is_csorog_az_o1g/. live.
  12. Web site: Public Works revealed why they remove any graffiti so quick critical of Orbán. 24.hu. Medvegy Gábor. 2018-08-27. 2018-12-19. 2018-12-19. https://web.archive.org/web/20181219193814/https://24.hu/kozelet/2018/08/27/elarulta-az-fkf-miert-szedik-le-gyorsan-az-orbant-szidalmazo-falfirkakat/. live.
  13. Web site: Letter to the Saturday demonstrators. 888.hu. Szentesi Zöldi László. 2018-04-23. 2018-12-19. 2018-12-19. https://web.archive.org/web/20181219182518/https://888.hu/article-level-a-szombati-tuntetokhoz. live.

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