Gyat Explained

Gyat (/ɡjɑːt/; an abbreviation of Goddamn, also spelled as Gyatt or Gyattt, pronounced ;) is a term from African-American Vernacular English originally used in exclamation. In the 2020s, the word experienced a semantic shift and gained the additional meaning of "a person, usually a woman, with large buttocks and sometimes an hourglass figure".[1] [2]

With slightly varying definitions, Gyat garnered virality on the social media platform TikTok in 2022[3] in part due to its frequent use by various online streamers.[4] It has become an internet meme, particularly employed and popularized by Generation Alpha.[5] [6]

Etymology

According to American linguist John McWhorter, the term "evolved from 'goddamn'."[7] According to Kelly Elizabeth Wright, a research fellow in language sciences at Virginia Tech, the provenance of Gyat has been considered to be Black Southern, Jamaican, among other communities of the African diaspora. The term is attributed to having roots of African-American Vernacular English.[8]

2022 semantic shift

The current meaning of the term Gyat was coined by online streamer YourRAGE, who used it to describe a physically attractive woman, and it was popularized by Kai Cenat, an American Twitch Streamer.[9] [10] [11]

On October 2, 2023, a TikTok account under the username @ovp.9 posted a short video of a character from the online video game Fortnite "singing" to a musical parody of the 2021 song "ecstacy" by Suicidal-Idol.[12] The parody featured multiple internet culture terms, including Skibidi Toilet and rizz.[13] According to The New York Times, the parody is cited as "a key" to the popularization of Gyat.

Backronyms have been created for the term like "Girl Your Ass Is Thick", "Girl You Ate That", "Get Your Act Together", among others.[14] [15]

Usage

According to Legit.ng, the term is commonly used by "guys when they see a girl, usually with a curvy body type," and can also be used to indicate enthusiasm or excitement.[16]

Gyat is characterized in the media as a term used both by Generation Alpha and Generation Z.[17] However, some members of Generation Z have stated that they do not attribute the term to their cohort. According to The Today Show, the term is used verbally and on messaging platforms such as Discord, TikTok, Twitch, Instagram, and YouTube.

Reception and impact

Gyat has been described as one of the early slang terms predominantly popularized by Generation Alpha: according to the New York Post, comments to a viral TikTok video about the term "deemed that Gen Z was out of touch regarding current lingo."[18] Alongside its attribution with Generation Alpha, Gyat has been of interest to digital marketers in consideration of the cohort's emerging consumer consumption.[19] The term was nominated for the American Dialect Society's 2023 Word of The Year.[20]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Topsfield . Jewel . 2023-11-18 . Bruh, what's a Fanum tax? Your guide to Gen Alpha slang . 2024-02-24 . . en . 2024-02-24 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240224051613/https://www.smh.com.au/national/bruh-what-s-a-fanum-tax-your-guide-to-gen-alpha-slang-20231117-p5ekrh.html . live .
  2. Web site: Press-Reynolds . Kieran . A woman's Gen Alpha sister explained the meaning of GYAT to her and it's making everyone feel very old . 2024-02-24 . . en-US . 2024-01-30 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240130210812/https://www.businessinsider.com/gen-alpha-slang-gyat-meaning-explained-millennial-2023-11 . live .
  3. Web site: Young . Molly . 2022-05-25 . Social media users confused over new TikTok slang GYAT . 2024-02-24 . . en-GB . 2024-02-24 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240224045226/https://www.hitc.com/en-gb/2022/05/25/what-does-gyat-mean-as-slang-term-goes-viral-in-tiktok-trend/ . live .
  4. News: Calver . Charlie . 2023-09-11 . The dating term dictionary for 2023 . 2024-02-24 . GQ.
  5. News: Kircher . Madison . 2023-11-09 . Gen Alpha Is Here. Can You Understand Their Slang? . 2024-02-24 . . 2023-12-21 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231221112338/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/08/style/gen-alpha-slang.html . live .
  6. Web site: Parents and Gen Alpha kids are having unintelligible convos because of ‘brainrot’ language . NBC News . en . 10 August 2024.
  7. Web site: Solé . Elise . 2024-01-10 . The kids are saying 'GYAT': What does it mean? . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20240224020032/https://www.today.com/parents/teens/gyat-meaning-rcna129527 . 2024-02-24 . 2024-02-24 . . en.
  8. Web site: Portée . Alex . 2024-02-23 . How did words like period, GYAT, cap, and drip come to be? All about the Black history of slang . 2024-03-19 . . en.
  9. Web site: Monaghan . Becca . 2023-11-29 . The coded meaning behind 'gyatt' on TikTok indy100 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20240224051613/https://www.indy100.com/tiktok/what-does-gyatt-mean-tiktok-2666387145 . 2024-02-24 . 2024-02-24 . . en.
  10. Web site: 2023-12-15 . This song wants you to stick out your what!? . 2024-03-17 . NPR (WBUR, Boston) . en.
  11. Ihaza . Jeff . 2023-12-07 . Kai Cenat, Twitch, and 'Rizz': How the Rap Internet Ruled 2023 . 2024-03-17 . Rolling Stone . en-US.
  12. Web site: Diaz . Ana . 2023-10-19 . 'You're so Skibidi, so Fanum tax,' and other fun nonsense, explained . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20240224183156/https://www.polygon.com/23921363/skibidi-fanum-tax-rizz-gyatt-gyat-meaning-meme-explained . 2024-02-24 . 2024-02-24 . . en-US.
  13. Web site: Stanford . Kaitlin . 2023-10-17 . What is 'Fanum tax'? TikTok song of Gen Alpha slang has Gen Z feeling like the new 'cringe' generation . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20231124172748/https://www.intheknow.com/post/fanum-tax-sticking-out-your-gyat-for-the-rizzler-tiktok/ . 2023-11-24 . 2024-02-24 . In The Know . en-US.
  14. Web site: Williams . Laura . 2023-05-19 . What does GYAT mean on TikTok? Viral slang term being used by thousands of users . 2024-03-19 . . en.
  15. Web site: 2024-01-04 . The kids are saying ‘GYAT’: What does it mean? . 2024-06-20 . Today . en.
  16. Web site: Mongina . Night . 2023-07-14 . What does GYATT mean? A popular TikTok slang term explained . 2024-03-19 . . en.
  17. Web site: Hatch . Megan . 2024-02-23 . What do these Gen Z slang words mean? 24 popular terms explained . 2024-03-19 . . en-US.
  18. Web site: Knight . Taylor . 2024-01-10 . These Gen Z slang terms are totally outdated, according to Gen Alpha: 'What does that even mean?' . 2024-03-19 . . en-US.
  19. Web site: Bradley . Diana . Marketers must learn to understand Gen Alpha's humor, attitude and lingo . 2024-03-19 . . en.
  20. https://americandialect.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/2023-Word-of-the-Year-PRESS-RELEASE.pdf American Dialect Society Selects “enshittification” as 2023 Word of the Year.

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