[Ads-l] teotwawki

[ADSGarson O'Toole]

A fan of R.E.M. used the acronym ITEOTWAWKI instead of TEOTWAWKI in
April 1994. The longer acronym matched the full song title. The match
occurred in the subject line and not in the body of the Usenet
message.
Further below is a match which fits the modern usage in May 1996.

Usenet newsgroup: rec.music.rem
Poster: The MAXX
Timestamp: Apr 7, 1994, 10:50:25 AM
Subject: ITEOTWAWKI Lyrics (funny) :)
https://groups.google.com/g/rec.music.rem/c/p7k6FfCwLFI/m/EJEUrYz-ZB8J

[Begin excerpt]
There's a part in "It's the End of the World as We Know it" that goes
"a tournament, a tournament, a tournament of lies" and until I got the
lyrics off of FTP, I thought for the longest time that it said
"Turn 'em into, turn 'em into, turn 'em into flies"
Just thought everyone would like to know...
[End excerpt]

Here is a match in the science fiction domain in 1996.

Date: May 1996
Journal: Postmodern Culture; Baltimore. Maryland
Volume 6, Issue 3
Article: The Slow Apocalypse: A Gradualistic Theory of the World's Demise
Author: Andrew McMurry
Database: ProQuest

[Begin excerpt]
For example, science fiction has developed an entire sub-genre to
explore the myriad shapes the apocalypse might take, and not
surprisingly, these books and movies about TEOTWAWKI form a catalogue
of disaster scenarios that replicate perfectly the seven deadly sins:
nuclear "anger" in A Canticle for Leibowitz and The Day After; the
"lust" of overpopulation in Soylent Green and Stand on Zanzibar; . . .
[End excerpt]

Garson

On Sun, Apr 14, 2024 at 9:10 PM ADSGarson O'Toole
<adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Here is a Usenet newsgroup match in 1995 from a fan of the band R.E.M.
> referring to the song "It's the End of the World as We Know It (And I
> Feel Fine)". The Fritinancy article mentioned the connection to R.E.M.
>
> Usenet newsgroup: rec.music.rem
> Poster: KimMomMSW
> Timestamp: Nov 23, 1995, 3:00:00 AM
> Subject: Last Show Highlights
>
> https://groups.google.com/g/rec.music.rem/c/uB9ztO3zcrw/m/QPMcSTQVw8cJ
>
> [Begin excerpt]
> Then, during TEOTWAWKI about 25-30 apparently "honored guests" came up
> on stage from the side of the stage where they had been standing and
> danced around. It was wild!! I wanted to be up there.
> [End excerpt]
>
> Garson
>
> On Sun, Apr 14, 2024 at 8:01 PM Nancy Friedman <wordworking at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > It’s pronounced “tee-ought-wah-kee,” and it’s been around for at least a
> > couple of decades. (A paywalled Boston Globe article to which I don't have
> > full access says since 1996.)  I included it in a 2012 post about peppers:
> >
> > https://nancyfriedman.typepad.com/away_with_words/2012/11/word-of-the-week-prepper.html
> >
> > Nancy Friedman
> > Chief Wordworker
> > https://wordworking.com
> > https://fritinancy.substack.com
> >
> > tel 510 652-4159
> > cel 510 304-3953
> > twitter/mastodon/instagram/bluesky/Threads @Fritinancy
> >
> > On Sun, Apr 14, 2024, 4:21 PM Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at gmail.com>
> > wrote:
> >
> > >
> > > https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/yes-civil-war-movie-terrifying-110000545.html
> > > :
> > >
> > > Some [militia groups] are more generally preparing for social collapse —
> > > what’s known in online circles as “teotwawki,” for “the end of the world as
> > > we know it”— and are stockpiling weapons and supplies in anticipation.
> > >
> > > JL
> > >
> > > --
> > > "If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."
> > >
> > > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> > >
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org