r/memes Doot 13d ago

What is this S called?

Post image
40.3k Upvotes

1.7k comments sorted by

1.6k

u/Ulpian02 13d ago

My mom unironically believed it was a satanic summoning rune

460

u/kotwt 13d ago

I thought it could summon superman...

173

u/siccoblue 13d ago

What's the difference?

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u/holyorifice 13d ago

superman doesn't have sex with your mom

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u/ANILsims 13d ago

is that a bird

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u/A8-94 13d ago

Is Bird still the word?

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u/throwawaytrash21207 13d ago

What of white bird shit, isn't actually shit...

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u/DadBane 13d ago

Prove it

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u/Toadsted 13d ago

I had hope it would

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u/SincereChimichanga 13d ago

I'm satan and this is a lie

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u/mrmoe198 13d ago

Satan, I’m a big fan. Took a lot of guts to stand up to the big man when he was lying to Adam and Eve in setting up an unjust system.

Something I’ve always wanted to know is, are you the ruler of hell? Are you being tortured there? What’s that all about?

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u/Scribese7en 13d ago

Kinda redundant, isn't it? Considering we were already in Hell.

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u/ares5404 13d ago

Lmao i hate those kinda ppl like how far has the stick gone lost up your ass for you to think "hrrrrrrr someone draw funny, must be devil work" stamps feet

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u/TheWetSock 13d ago

It appears in middle school and fades in high school. No one knows where it comes from or what it means . They just know it looks cool and they must draw it .

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u/LifeguardPotential97 13d ago

Actually there's a really good video by Lemmino explaining where it might've come from, it's origins are in graffiti and dates back to as early as 1890.

467

u/limpdix 13d ago

I was hoping someone would mention our boy u/lemmino, he’s come a long way since his top ten day. Love his videos

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u/TrueBurritoTrouble GigaChad 13d ago

Became a subscriber after his DB Cooper video, man is seriously talented, gave us the iconic music "Cicada" too

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u/extention_cable 13d ago edited 13d ago

dam thought we didn't know who dB was? but he put here makin music!?

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u/mindzze 13d ago

What happened to him? , I love his videos.

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u/Wilco120 13d ago

He's making a very long documentary with 13 chapters or so, he is finnishing it up and itl release somewhere in the coming months, you can check his patreon or r/lemmino for updates

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u/HandImpressive03 13d ago

How about 1533 where it appears in Hans Holbein’s painting The Ambassadors.

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u/HothMonster 13d ago

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u/OkWater2560 13d ago

I can’t find it.

Aha! Also holy crap the zoom level in that photo.

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u/bhongryp 13d ago edited 13d ago

The S is a detail in the center of the embroidery Turkoman style carpet hanging from the shelf, and the crucifix (comment before yours) is in the top left.

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u/Affenbart 13d ago

It’s not embroidery but a Turkoman style carpet. Which adds another dimension to the search.

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u/Geikamir 13d ago

Seriously. I can see the wood grain pores of Jesus' nipples with that level of zoom.

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u/SirRevan 13d ago

Fun fact, that skull looks correct when viewed from the sides.

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u/Unajustable_Justice 13d ago

Just a regular S. It isn't like the one we are talking about at all. The only similarities is the blocked style

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u/bollockwort 13d ago

Took me a few to find it, but I am impressed it's there. I'm also impressed by the detail in the half crucifix hiding behind the curtain

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u/samasters88 13d ago

Is it the thing right in the middle, in white?

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u/Proplaystowinyt 13d ago

Where did you come from where did you go where did you come from funny looking S

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u/LetTruthSetYouFree 13d ago

Probably because they are the exact lyrics to Cotton Eye Joe with just 3 words switched at the end.

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u/EnriqueShockwav 13d ago

It just showed up on my son’s schoolwork in a doodle. He’s in Kindergarten and I couldn’t be more proud.

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u/Cuddling-Hellhound 13d ago

It’s an SCP!!!

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u/NATHAN325 13d ago

Literally memetic

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u/Sad_Possibility8050 13d ago

Memetic hazard

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u/Jay-diesel 13d ago

Memetics benevolence

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u/alickz 13d ago

An actual god damn mother fucking MEME

DAWKINS DIED FOR THIS RIP

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u/Cross_Contamination 13d ago

Oh fuuuuuuuck.

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u/DaEpicNess666 13d ago

Actually it’s just an S

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u/etrob90 13d ago

On our planet it stands for hope.

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u/ObiShaneKenobi 13d ago

“Hope this fuckin bell rings”

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u/YouDownWithOPD 13d ago

We always referred to it at as the "Stussy S" in school

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u/vinylectric 13d ago

We always knew it as Stüssy. It was some brand in the 90s

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u/bannana 13d ago

ok, but we were drawing that S in the 70s

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u/SonovaVondruke 13d ago

Stussy never used this icon as part of its branding.

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u/SnooLobsters4972 13d ago

Wait what? This is a Mandela effect because I distinctly remember it being on a shirt in the 90’s

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u/vinylectric 13d ago

Well we didn’t have internet back then, but that’s what we knew it as

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u/SummerSeaFaery 13d ago

When I was growing up in the ‘90’s in SoCal, I almost got expelled from SECOND GRADE for putting this “gang sign” on my artwork I turned in for homework. So, that’s my guess. Gang sign.

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u/my1stone 13d ago

San Diego or Orange County...? Checks out

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u/DeylanQuel 13d ago

I don't know, but I'm pretty sure the guy that taught us to draw it is the same guy that told us about Marylin Manson getting a rib removed and Richard Gere having gerbil-related issues.

418

u/lmkwe 13d ago

Holy shit I know that guy!

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u/DeylanQuel 13d ago

That's the thing... everybody knows that guy. That guy was spreading rumors and desk-art far and wide across the globe. He was like the Santa Claus of pre-internet middle schoolers.

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u/Bobletoob 13d ago

He's the real scp

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u/CosmicCryptid_13 Smol pp 13d ago

Ya know…that’d make a pretty cool scp. All he does is poses as (shapeshifts into?) a middle-schooler and spreads urban legends and stuff

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u/yuyuyashasrain 13d ago

I’m convinced. Canon accepted

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u/CosmicCryptid_13 Smol pp 13d ago

Same. Now I wanna make an scp entry for it. Or something. I could workshop the idea and stuff.

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u/yuyuyashasrain 13d ago

Please do

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u/CosmicCryptid_13 Smol pp 13d ago

Aight I’ll make something. I already have my own universe based on urban legends and stuff so I’ll make something then I’ll spin it for other universes

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u/Qui-434 13d ago

class: uhhhh yes

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u/APileOfShiit 13d ago

Containment procedure: Each week introduce a tween age child into enclosure, making sure they have no knowledge of any urban legends. In case of security breach, check [REDACTED] School for a strange "new kid" and encourage to reenter enclosure.

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u/mindbleach 13d ago

Too direct. He's an apparition caused by chemicals in SysCo pizza. You can still see him today, if you go to a really shitty cafeteria, but he might manifest in your brain as a dude who's really into crypto.

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u/CosmicCryptid_13 Smol pp 13d ago

That can work too lol

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u/ryohazuki224 13d ago

The fact that those things, like cooties or even the idea of cooties, or words like "umbers!" spread in the pre-internet days means that humanity is just determined to spread memes, no matter what.

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u/Beamstalk44 13d ago

Its also the same guy that taught the 2 different paper fold games. One was like square and folded up. The other had a weird shape were u could grip it from the bottom. Both had something to do with fortune telling.

The crazy thing many may not remember. This is also the guy that taught you the "yankle doodle" satire memes in elementary.

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u/BaconFlavoredToast 13d ago

"Of course I know him. He's me!"

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u/Zarathustrahn 13d ago

Don't forget the rumor that Taco Bell's meat is considered just barely meat.

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u/sixtus_clegane119 13d ago

Chihuahua meat. That’s why there is a chihuahua in the commercials

Also the hotel level of goldeneye you could get to by using game shark and going across the river in the dam level.

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u/Extra-Imagination-13 13d ago

I forgot about the little chihuahua 🥹what if they cloned it and used the clones

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u/boringsimp 13d ago

Yes... i heard the marylin mansin thing as well. Also that corey Taylor slit a ladys throat for satan. And had operation on his forehead to push back his hairline. So he can fit the mask better.

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u/Original-Childhood 13d ago

In my school it was Justin Timberlake who removed a rib

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u/[deleted] 13d ago

[deleted]

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u/shitstain_hurricane 13d ago

Playing an extreme game of Operation, obviously.

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u/DeylanQuel 13d ago

So he could fellate Richard Gere's gerbil?

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u/pelerinli 13d ago

In Turkey it is Eminem or Manson, depends on your age.

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u/TheTankCleaner 13d ago

That seems way less believable than Manson doing it.

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u/kenman884 13d ago

My school had it as Michael Jackson.

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u/sm00thArsenal 13d ago

It was Prince with the ribs in my day.

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u/model3113 13d ago

and lil kim having her stomach pumped.

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u/Clover2008 13d ago

So the gerbil thing not true?

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u/DeylanQuel 13d ago

Nah, others are saying it was a rumor that was drummed up by Stallone, but that's a little less fun.

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u/Clover2008 13d ago

My world has been shattered. FYI, in 3rd grade Andrew K told me about Marilyn and Mr Gere, and in 6th grade same dude drew that S everywhere.

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u/hbilalshah 13d ago

HERE

This guy made a video on the origin of it a few years ago

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u/AjarTadpole7202 13d ago

Before I click on the link, is that lemino?

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u/DireWolfPvP 13d ago

Yes

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u/HungrySeaweed1847 13d ago

Damn, I was hoping that it would be a more conclusive video.

Lemmino is great entertainment but what a disappointment that video was.

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u/P529 13d ago

Just watched it and have to agree.

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u/keystothecuff 13d ago

exactly what i thought, and i was right

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u/dontfactcheckthis 13d ago

TL;DW?

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u/LittleWaithu 13d ago

No official origin is ever discovered but there’s many possibilities based off earliest appearances.

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u/1DayIllDieButNot2Day 13d ago

It really is an scp

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u/xSantenoturtlex 13d ago Silver

[S]cp

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u/ExceptionTheGOAT 13d ago

What's the fuck is a scp?

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u/Frost5574 Dirt Is Beautiful 13d ago

SCP (Secure Contain Protect) Foundation is a user made world where there's monsters and weird shit called anomalies and they're ranked on how dangerous they are. From least to most dangerous; safe, euclid, and keter.

If you ever hear storied of SCP-173 or SCP-096, the numbers indicate a specific monster or weird shit. They each have their own stories and powers. Most of the time they just kill shit. All of them contain the letters SCP to indicate they're part of the foundation.

Imagine an organized creepypasta but each pasta shares the same universe. They're also controlled by this super government organization that collects and contains these SCPs.

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u/Arthur_da_King 13d ago

Dafuq did I just read

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u/[deleted] 13d ago

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u/NikSorakisAbitch 13d ago

MEMETIC HAZARD DETECTED

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u/nicolasmcfly Flair Loading.... 13d ago

It's earliest appearance is on the background graffiti of a 70s documentary and nobody seems to know where it came from.

Also, Too Lazy, Didn't "Write"?

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u/dontfactcheckthis 13d ago

Watch. And isn't L long? I meant long but I guess I am lazy. So thank you!

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u/Horskr 13d ago

At the end, he also finds a similar (but rounded version) version in a book published in 1890 by a Princeton professor that may have evolved into the pointed one we all know.

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u/TellAPhony 13d ago

Beat me to it. This video is excellent.

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u/Ok-Mulberry-7237 13d ago

Beat meat to it. This video is excellent.

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u/aegelis 13d ago

Beat me too. This video is excellent.

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u/tasadek 13d ago

Be mean to it, this is an excel document.

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u/naheana 13d ago

reminded me immediately of that video. too bad he couldn’t actually discover the origin.

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u/xJanise 13d ago

"cool s" or "standard grafitti s" are 2 names ik are used for it

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u/ThatOneNerd21 13d ago

I called it super s

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u/naheana 13d ago

same?? idk where u guys got the “cool s” from

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u/OrganizationPublic91 13d ago

The cool s is what Wikipedia calls it

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u/Zippy0723 13d ago

this is the way.

it is super S

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u/Narrow-Tap116 13d ago

Whaaaaat all throughout my time in school it was distinctly known as the "gangster s"

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u/YourLocalMedic 13d ago

Only ever heard "the cool s"

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u/rentz_due 13d ago

Is that when she inserts an ice cube after she’s done eating her Taco Bell

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u/Extra-Imagination-13 13d ago

I always thought it was a gang symbol

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u/Working-Telephone-45 13d ago

We all call it "Legendary S"

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u/Similar_Election5864 13d ago

It was the sk8er s for us. It was cool and obviously only the coolest people could write/draw it properly ahah

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u/Red_Neck_Slim_Jim https://www.youtube.com/watch/dQw4w9WgXcQ 13d ago

Me n my friends call it the "Skateboard S"

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u/ApertureTheProtogen 13d ago

Had a name for it: “Awesome S”

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u/07md 13d ago edited 13d ago

The beginning of every graphic designer

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u/brodega 13d ago

Yes, that will be £100,000 for a squiggle

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u/Ocean-in-Motion 13d ago

That sir, is a Somersloop

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u/tsunami845 13d ago

grid shutdown noise intensifies

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u/Mulder1917 13d ago

The original viral meme. Before the internet, it was drawn by all kids in all schools nationwide.

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u/NesCie0617 13d ago

Try all around the world. It was pretty big in Asia as well. I’m pretty sure it was well known in Europe too

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u/Hillz44 13d ago

Just “The S”

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u/Bardic_Space_Orc 13d ago

It really doesn't need more. If you ask someone if they drew "the s" in school they will know what you mean.

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u/Stickytape777 13d ago edited 13d ago

In the 90s it was referred to as the Stussy or stoo-see symbol.

Edit: Holy guacamole! Never thought I'd get a reaction like this lol. Love the comments.

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u/marginwalker3 13d ago

wait, stoo-see? it's not stuh-see?

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u/Drag0nfly_Girl 13d ago

There's an umlaut over the U (Ü), which makes an oo sound.

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u/Stickytape777 13d ago

That's how everyone I knew said it lol They always said it like Stoo-see

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u/[deleted] 13d ago

I've heard this too but sadly I was drawing this way before Stussy.

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u/IntoTheMystic1 13d ago

Was it just a SoCal thing in the 90s or was it pretty universally known as stussy?

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u/mouthsmasher 13d ago

I grew up in Washington state and remember it being called stussy as well

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u/Runinbearass 13d ago

Clothing brand

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u/Starexcelsior 13d ago

And yet they never used this S

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u/ProfZussywussBrown 13d ago

I’d swear I had a Stüssy hat with the S in the early 90s, but I would not at all be surprised if it was a Mandela effect, Fruit of the Loom cornucopia type situation.

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u/NeedsMoreBunGuns 13d ago

Although frequently referred to as the Stüssy S, Emmy Coats (who has worked alongside Shawn Stussy since 1985) has stated that it was never a symbol of the Californian surf company.

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u/GerFubDhuw 13d ago

I'd never even heard of that brand before 2016. The S I knew and where I'm from we definitely didn't call it stussy... Not saying that stussy wasn't around but it wasn't in the popular consciousness like the S was.

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u/A_fellow_crusader 13d ago

I though it meant savage, but it seems like the entirety of the internet has a different explanation

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u/Hoopsie_Doopsie 13d ago

I always called it the Superman S. Lol. I doubt that’s correct tho.

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u/How_TF_ 13d ago

I too had always called it the Superman S

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u/YhormBIGGiant 13d ago

Chinese S

Cool S

THE S

S

Like....we all just know what it is. We know the instructions, it must be hard coded in our brain or something or is just THE pattern that our brain defaults to.

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u/Elliothc13 13d ago

"Cool S" or "Universal S" if I remember correctly. LEMMINO made a good video investigating where it could have come from:

https://youtu.be/RQdxHi4_Pvc

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u/oborse 13d ago

I always thought it meant Stussy

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u/Bjorn_Gylfi Identifies as a Cybertruck 13d ago

Reccomend watching “the universal S” by Lemmino, very good video!

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u/NoInitiative4821 13d ago

I always thought that S was short for Stussy.

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u/exploooooosions 13d ago

These days we all know it isn't related to Stüssy but we all called it the Stüssy S back in the 80s

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u/Interest-Desk 13d ago

This S is basically the longest lasting ever meme.

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u/Anxious_Extreme_6532 13d ago

Always called it an “S Chain” cause u could continue doing it from the top or bottom to form a chain shape

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u/PissinginTheW1nd 13d ago

We always called it “super s”

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u/Destringe 13d ago

Sameee

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u/LittleWaithu 13d ago

The universal S, here’s an interesting video of you wanna learn about it by Lemmino

https://youtu.be/RQdxHi4_Pvc

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u/_Bluntzzz 13d ago

I have an S in my name and for a little while I would do the holy grail of all S’s the all mighty whenever I’d write my name on schoolwork

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u/EnderTheGreatwashere 13d ago

According to my parents it’s called the “Super S”

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u/The_Thur 13d ago

In France, we call that an American S. Never knew why.

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u/LeeKinanus 13d ago

yeah but could you line up like ten in a row all connected?

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u/PurpleCatWithC4 hates reaction memes 13d ago

I gotta say I just drew stick people having wars on my paper, and tanks, helicopters..I think I was always day dreaming about playing C&C Generals and just you know made my own story to it, I even wrote text to it explaining the battle, the story

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u/Thepresenceofpower 13d ago

It’s not an S. On my world it means hope.

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u/LeviathanEugenious 13d ago

So I've read the s is called a "cool S" and it's earliest known place is in a 1533 painting called "the ambassadors". It's right in the middle of the table cloth

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u/AP_Things807 13d ago

I just recall that we called it the “Diamond S” back in middle school.

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u/IreneLyman 13d ago

Ah, the nostalgic memories! It was around the late 80s when Stussy, the clothing brand, emerged, coinciding with our early adventures of sketching those designs.

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u/politepain 13d ago

Most common name I've seen is "cool S"

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u/TurdSandwich42104 Average r/memes enjoyer 13d ago

Does this still happen in middle school today?

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u/manonfire493 13d ago

Somersloop. Comply. Power_Grid_Shutdown.wav

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u/Smolbeanigar 12d ago

I draw d*cks on the back of my notes during my middle school

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u/TaylaAdidas 13d ago

Awesome S

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u/NASTYHAM83 13d ago

It's drawn wrong

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u/X03R_mysterious Ok I Pull Up 13d ago

fun fact! we dont know the origin of the cool S and its circled around the world

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u/boringsimp 13d ago

Sum41 s. Is what my schoolmates called it

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u/Zendakon 13d ago

In Satisfactory it's called a SomerSloop

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u/Starexcelsior 13d ago

The universal S

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u/TacovilleMC 13d ago

FINALLY, MY KNOWLEDGE HAS USE!!!

The great name for this holy symbol, as it is know among mortals, is the great "Somersloop". Use this knowledge with care.

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u/NyZyn 13d ago

Grew up in KCK, didn't know that everyone didn't see this as a $ sign.