SELFIE
is named Oxford Dictionaries Word of the Year 2013
selfie noun, informal
(also selfy; plural selfies)
a photograph that one has taken of
oneself, typically one taken with a smartphone or webcam and uploaded to
a social media website
19 November 2013, Oxford, UK:
Today Oxford Dictionaries announces
selfie as
their international Word of the Year 2013. The Oxford Dictionaries Word
of the Year is a word or expression that has attracted a great deal of
interest during the year to date. Language research conducted by Oxford
Dictionaries editors reveals that the frequency of the word
selfie in the English language has increased by 17,000% since this time last year.
Selfie can actually be traced back to 2002 when it was used
in an Australian online forum. The word gained momentum throughout the
English-speaking world in 2013 as it evolved from a social media
buzzword to mainstream shorthand for a self-portrait photograph. Its
linguistic productivity is already evident in the creation of numerous
related spin-off terms showcasing particular parts of the body like
helfie (a picture of one’s hair) and
belfie (a picture of one’s posterior); a particular activity –
welfie (workout selfie) and
drelfie (drunken selfie), and even items of furniture –
shelfie and
bookshelfie.
Judy Pearsall, Editorial Director for Oxford Dictionaries, explained
the decision: “Using the Oxford Dictionaries language research
programme, which collects around 150 million words of current English in
use each month, we can see a phenomenal upward trend in the use of
selfie in 2013, and this helped to cement its selection as Word of the Year.”
The Word of the Year need not have been coined within the past twelve
months, but it does need to have become prominent or notable in that
time.
Selfie was added to OxfordDictionaries.com in August 2013,
although the Word of the Year selection is made irrespective of whether
the candidates are already included in an Oxford dictionary.
Selfie is not yet in the Oxford English Dictionary (
OED), but is currently being considered for future inclusion.
The earliest known selfie
Research shows the word
selfie in use by 2002. The earliest known usage is found in an Australian online forum post:
2002 ABC Online (forum posting) 13 Sept.
“Um, drunk at a mates 21st, I tripped ofer [sic] and landed lip first
(with front teeth coming a very close second) on a set of steps. I had a
hole about 1cm long right through my bottom lip. And sorry about the
focus, it was a selfie.”
The rise of the selfie
Judy Pearsall explained the evolution of the word
selfie:
“Social media sites helped to popularize the term, with the tag ‘selfie’
appearing on the photo-sharing website Flickr as early as 2004, but
usage wasn’t widespread until around 2012, when
selfie was being used commonly in mainstream media sources.
“In early examples, the word was often spelled with a -y, but the -ie
form is more common today and has become the accepted spelling. The use
of the diminutive -ie suffix is notable, as it helps to turn an
essentially narcissistic enterprise into something rather more
endearing. Australian English has something of a penchant for -ie words –
barbie for barbecue,
firie for firefighter,
tinnie for a can of beer – so this helps to support the evidence for
selfie having originated in Australia.”
If you found the article interesting and you'd like to know something else about
The Word of the Year shortlist,
