There is plenty of precedent for it in talking about racial minorities - Satchmo, Jose, etc.
It’s a really, really common thing. I run into “Karen” everywhere; Reddit, Facebook, private conversations, etc.
Amiright, everyone but Bo & Typo?
Heck, one of the oldest concepts in American culture (indeed predating American culture) is the somewhat-derisive term “Yankee”, which (some linguists argue) is derived from the Dutch name Jan (“John”), possibly Jan Kaas (“John Cheese”), a nickname some Dutch settlers had for other Dutch settlers, before the whole region became English (by conquest) and eventually American (by revolution).
I’m with them. Never heard of it. To me, “Karen” is a common girls’ name.
~Max
Try being a Becky.
Same demographic that thinks, “ok, boomer,” is hilarious.
Satchmo? Other than Louis Armstrong, I’ve never, ever heard this term used to describe a single soul.
At least you’ve got the good hair.
I also run into it everywhere, social media and real life. It’s every third meme on some humor sites.
Is there anyone who has never been made fun for their name? Either it rhymes with something funny, or is associated with TV or movie character, or some other negative cultural icon? Kids do that kind of hazing all the time, and sometimes it persists into adulthood.
“Dolores!”
Thank you, I really appreciate your extensive contribution to the discussion.
I’ve never heard “Karen” used to refer to anything/body other than somebody actually named Karen.
I opened this thread to find out what the OP was talking about. Ignorance fought, I suppose.
If you are of a certain age, long ago you would have heard the name “Bruce” when spoken with a lisp, indicating an effeminite gay man. So, the idea of a name used as a stereotype is not new.
And the article I linked to upthread pointed out:
Other than this thread, I’ve never heard of this thing. On the other hand, I don’t have Reddit or Facebook apps, and rarely have private conversations.
If it’s not a thing on the SDMB, I’ll probably miss it.
That’s not what this is, it’s not about making fun of someone whose real name is Karen.
Describing “Karen” as an eponym does not seem correct. That’s when something is named after a specific person. I’m pretty sure that there was no original Karen - nor Paddy nor Guido for that matter. Paddy is a common name that’s distinctively Irish; perhaps similarly Karen was a relatively popular name for women born 40-50 years ago. And there’s just a random viral element to why they caught on to denote a stereotype.
I’ve heard a few more, but it certainly was Louis Armstrong’s nickname. I suspect he meant to say Sambo. Which acquired very strong racial overtones. But I read Little Black Sambo as a child, and that child was quite clever. I’m not sure how it became a derogatory name.
Ermahgerd, Becky!! 2 beck’s in one thread(:))
Never heard of it.
To the OP, yes, you’re being overly sensitive.
Also, this thread seems more suited to IMHO.