Gyatt

Gyatt (/ɡjɑːt/ ⓘ) is a term from African-American Vernacular English originally used in exclamation, such as "gyatt damn". In the 2020s, the word experienced a semantic shift and gained the additional meaning of "a person, usually a woman, with large and attractive buttocks and sometimes an hourglass figure".

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

Etymology

According to American linguist John McWhorter, the term "evolved from 'goddamn'." Kelly Elizabeth Wright, a research fellow in language sciences at Virginia Tech, claims that the provenance of gyatt is thought to be Black Southern, Jamaican, among other communities of the African diaspora. The term is attributed to having roots of African-American Vernacular English.

2022 semantic shift

Popular streamer Kai Cenat, who popularized the word gyatt

The current meaning of the term gyatt 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.

Everybody used to say "god damn" or "golly" but I said it weird. I'd always say "gyatt", I would never say "god damn". Chat realized that, and a way of making fun of me in 2020, they started typing "gyatt" to mock me.

— YourRAGE, "THE ONLY DEFINITION OF #GYATT 😒 #gyat #gyatttttttt" (2023)

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. The parody featured multiple internet culture terms, including Skibidi Toilet and rizz. According to The New York Times, the parody is cited as "a key" to the popularization of gyatt.

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

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.

Gyatt is characterized in the media as a term used both by Generation Alpha and Generation Z. 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

Alongside its attribution with Generation Alpha, gyatt has been of interest to digital marketers in consideration of the cohort's emerging consumer consumption. The term was nominated for the American Dialect Society's 2023 Word of The Year.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Topsfield, Jewel (November 18, 2023). "Bruh, what's a Fanum tax? Your guide to Gen Alpha slang". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on February 24, 2024. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  2. 1 2 Press-Reynolds, Kieran. "A woman's Gen Alpha sister explained the meaning of GYAT to her and it's making everyone feel very old". Business Insider. Archived from the original on January 30, 2024. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  3. ↑ Young, Molly (May 25, 2022). "Social media users confused over new TikTok slang GYAT". HITC. Archived from the original on February 24, 2024. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  4. ↑ Calver, Charlie (September 11, 2023). "The dating term dictionary for 2023". GQ. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  5. 1 2 Kircher, Madison (November 9, 2023). "Gen Alpha Is Here. Can You Understand Their Slang?". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 21, 2023. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  6. ↑ "Parents and Gen Alpha kids are having unintelligible convos because of 'brainrot' language". NBC News. August 10, 2024.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Solé, Elise (January 10, 2024). "The kids are saying 'GYAT': What does it mean?". TODAY.com. Archived from the original on February 24, 2024. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  8. ↑ Portée, Alex (February 23, 2024). "How did words like period, GYAT, cap, and drip come to be? All about the Black history of slang". TODAY.com. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
  9. ↑ Monaghan, Becca (November 29, 2023). "The coded meaning behind 'gyatt' on TikTok | indy100". Indy100. Archived from the original on February 24, 2024. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  10. ↑ "This song wants you to stick out your what!?". NPR (WBUR, Boston). December 15, 2023. Retrieved March 17, 2024.
  11. ↑ Ihaza, Jeff (December 7, 2023). "Kai Cenat, Twitch, and 'Rizz': How the Rap Internet Ruled 2023". Rolling Stone. Retrieved March 17, 2024.
  12. ↑ YourRAGE (June 4, 2023). "THE ONLY DEFINITION OF #GYATT 😒 #gyat #gyatttttttt". YouTube.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  13. ↑ Diaz, Ana (October 19, 2023). "'You're so Skibidi, so Fanum tax,' and other fun nonsense, explained". Polygon. Archived from the original on February 24, 2024. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  14. ↑ Stanford, Kaitlin (October 17, 2023). "What is 'Fanum tax'? TikTok song of Gen Alpha slang has Gen Z feeling like the new 'cringe' generation". In The Know. Archived from the original on November 24, 2023. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  15. ↑ Williams, Laura (May 19, 2023). "What does GYAT mean on TikTok? Viral slang term being used by thousands of users". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
  16. ↑ "The kids are saying 'GYAT': What does it mean?". Today. January 4, 2024. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  17. ↑ Mongina, Night (July 14, 2023). "What does GYATT mean? A popular TikTok slang term explained". Legit.ng. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
  18. ↑ Hatch, Megan (February 23, 2024). "What do these Gen Z slang words mean? 24 popular terms explained". WSYR-TV. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
  19. ↑ Bradley, Diana. "Marketers must learn to understand Gen Alpha's humor, attitude and lingo". Campaign. Retrieved March 19, 2024.
  20. ↑ Roberts, Julie (January 5, 2024). "American Dialect Society Selects "enshittification" as 2023 Word of the Year" (PDF) (Press release). American Dialect Society. Retrieved April 12, 2025.