Meaning
What does Ackshually mean?
Ackshually refers to the purposely misspelled caption of the word “actually”, paired with a stereotypical image macro illustration of a geeky person, most likely a Weeb, Otaku or a Neckbeard.
The misspelling can be accredited to the intention of reflecting the stereotypical slurring, associated with nerdy people, who are aiming to discredit a statement made on a topic dear to them – like Loli Hentai.
Origin
What's the origin of Ackshually?
While the exact origin of the meme is not known, the first instance of “ackshually” misspelled in a similar fashion can be traced to an Urban Dictionary entry, uploaded on May 7th, 2011.
An early case of the image macro was uploaded to FunnyJunk on April 2nd, 2012.
Spread & Usage
How did Ackshually spread?
Although the meme had appeared on various sites like 4chan in the years to follow, “ackshually” wouldn’t take off as a viral reaction image until 2016, when it was posted on 9GAG.
Throughout the late 2010’s, “ackshually” spread to sites like iFunny, Twitter, Instagram and Reddit, being featured on reaction image macros, as well as GIFs.
External resources
- Reddit – r/NoStupidQuestions