Meme — Lexography

Location not yet researched. No defensible word-specific location was established in the inspected lexical source; no origin site is inferred.

Journey of meaning

3 forms

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The meme journey, in text

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μίμημα · Ancient Greek material
noun · Ancient Greek material
Transliteration: mimēma
An imitation; learned source material.. An imitation; learned source material.
Date not yet researched — No word-specific date established in the inspected lexical source.
Location not yet researched — No defensible word-specific location was established in the inspected lexical source; no origin site is inferred.
The entry says Dawkins coined meme from Greek sources such as mimēma/mimeisthai and intended it to echo gene. meme — selected etymology and sense sections · selected etymology and sense sections
Richard Dawkins introduced English meme in The Selfish Gene in 1976 as a name for a cultural replicator. meme — selected etymology and sense sections · selected etymology and sense sections
meme · English
noun · English
Reading: Reading not yet researched
A unit of cultural transmission or imitation.. A unit of cultural transmission or imitation.
c. 1976 · Dawkins’s meme coinage — Reported first-use context; not necessarily the date of coinage or transmission.
Location not yet researched — No defensible word-specific location was established in the inspected lexical source; no origin site is inferred.
The entry says Dawkins coined meme from Greek sources such as mimēma/mimeisthai and intended it to echo gene. meme — selected etymology and sense sections · selected etymology and sense sections
Richard Dawkins introduced English meme in The Selfish Gene in 1976 as a name for a cultural replicator. meme — selected etymology and sense sections · selected etymology and sense sections
The entry dates the Digital Age sense to 1997. meme — selected etymology and sense sections · selected etymology and sense sections
meme · English
noun · English
Reading: Reading not yet researched
A widely shared witty or incisive digital image, text or video.. A widely shared witty or incisive digital image, text or video.
c. 1997 · internet meme sense — Reported first-use context; not necessarily the date of coinage or transmission.
Location not yet researched — No defensible word-specific location was established in the inspected lexical source; no origin site is inferred.
Richard Dawkins introduced English meme in The Selfish Gene in 1976 as a name for a cultural replicator. meme — selected etymology and sense sections · selected etymology and sense sections
The entry dates the Digital Age sense to 1997. meme — selected etymology and sense sections · selected etymology and sense sections

Relationships

mimēma → meme: derivation, documented. The English coinage uses Greek material; this is derivation/coinage, not direct borrowing. meme — selected etymology and sense sections · selected etymology and sense sections meme — selected etymology and sense sections · selected etymology and sense sections

meme → meme: semantic-change, documented. The internet sense is later English semantic development. meme — selected etymology and sense sections · selected etymology and sense sections meme — selected etymology and sense sections · selected etymology and sense sections

Inspect the evidence 3 claims

Open a claim to follow the source and our interpretation.

01The entry says Dawkins coined meme from Greek sources such as mimēma/mimeisthai and intended it to echo gene.
Source
meme — selected etymology and sense sectionsOnline Etymology Dictionarymeme — selected etymology and sense sections · selected etymology and sense sections
Source passage
Source summary · not a quotation
The entry records Richard Dawkins’s 1976 English coinage meme in The Selfish Gene, formed from Greek material such as mimēma/mimeisthai and designed to echo gene. It dates the internet sense to 1997; the modern word is not treated as a direct ancient-Greek borrowing.
meme — selected etymology and sense sections · selected etymology and sense sections
Qualification Qualified
Greek is represented as learned material for an English coinage, not as a direct historical donor of the modern English word.
What Lexography infers
Lexography selects this account for the named form or sense; wording and presentation are editorial.
Checked 2026-09-14. Linked source retains its copyright. Brief original factual paraphrases only; no full article redistributed.
02Richard Dawkins introduced English meme in The Selfish Gene in 1976 as a name for a cultural replicator.
Source
meme — selected etymology and sense sectionsOnline Etymology Dictionarymeme — selected etymology and sense sections · selected etymology and sense sections
Source passage
Source summary · not a quotation
The entry records Richard Dawkins’s 1976 English coinage meme in The Selfish Gene, formed from Greek material such as mimēma/mimeisthai and designed to echo gene. It dates the internet sense to 1997; the modern word is not treated as a direct ancient-Greek borrowing.
meme — selected etymology and sense sections · selected etymology and sense sections
Qualification Source-supported
The inspected source supports this bounded lexical statement; it does not establish every use, date or transmission event.
What Lexography infers
Lexography selects this account for the named form or sense; wording and presentation are editorial.
Checked 2026-09-14. Linked source retains its copyright. Brief original factual paraphrases only; no full article redistributed.
03The entry dates the Digital Age sense to 1997.
Source
meme — selected etymology and sense sectionsOnline Etymology Dictionarymeme — selected etymology and sense sections · selected etymology and sense sections
Source passage
Source summary · not a quotation
The entry records Richard Dawkins’s 1976 English coinage meme in The Selfish Gene, formed from Greek material such as mimēma/mimeisthai and designed to echo gene. It dates the internet sense to 1997; the modern word is not treated as a direct ancient-Greek borrowing.
meme — selected etymology and sense sections · selected etymology and sense sections
Qualification Source-supported
The inspected source supports this bounded lexical statement; it does not establish every use, date or transmission event.
What Lexography infers
Lexography selects this account for the named form or sense; wording and presentation are editorial.
Checked 2026-09-14. Linked source retains its copyright. Brief original factual paraphrases only; no full article redistributed.