Youthquake named 2017 word of the year by Oxford Dictionaries after Jeremy Corbyn success

Youthquake: Jeremy Corbyn's election campaign inspired young people in the UK
Jeremy Selwyn
Patrick Grafton-Green15 December 2017

Youthquake has been named 2017’s word of the year by Oxford Dictionaries after young people rallied around Jeremy Corbyn during the General Election.

The use of the word, defined as "a significant cultural, political, or social change arising from the actions or influence of young people", has increased by five times in the last year.

It was coined 50 years ago by Vogue editor Diana Vreeland to describe how youth culture was changing fashion and music.

But its use over the last 12 months has a more political context, in part due to the general election and increase in young voters.

Casper Grathwohl, president of Oxford Dictionaries, said: "Youthquake may not seem like the most obvious choice for word of the year, and it's true that it's yet to land firmly on American soil, but strong evidence in the UK calls it out as a word on the move.

"We chose youthquake based on its evidence and linguistic interest. But most importantly for me, at a time when our language is reflecting our deepening unrest and exhausted nerves, it is a rare political word that sounds a hopeful note.

"Sometimes you pick a word as the word of the year because you recognise that it has arrived, but other times you pick one that is knocking at the door and you want to help usher it in.

"This past year calls for a word we can all rally behind."

Youthquake was chosen from a shortlist that included the word broflake – a man who is readily upset or offended by progressive attitudes that conflict with his more conventional or conservative views – and newsjacking – defined as taking advantage of current events to promote a brand.

Also on the shortlist were the terms milkshake duck, defined as a "person or thing that initially inspires delight on social media but is soon revealed to have a distasteful or repugnant past" and white fragility, which is "discomfort and defensiveness on the part of a white person when confronted by information about racial inequality and injustice".

Susie Dent, consultant to Oxford Dictionaries, said: "There's not a lot of sunshine in the standout words this year.

"Words like Antifa and kompromat speak to fractured times of mistrust and frustration.

"In youthquake we find some hope in the power to change things, and had a little bit of linguistic fun along the way. It feels like the right note on which to end a difficult and divisive year."

Previous words of the year include omnishambles, post-truth and selfie.

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