- Global Voices - https://globalvoices.org -

Tchip: The “Shaking My Head” Meme from Africa

Categories: Caribbean, Sub-Saharan Africa, Western Europe, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, France, Martinique, Arts & Culture, Citizen Media, Digital Activism, Ethnicity & Race, Humor, Ideas, Youth

Nadéra Bouazza explains what being “tchippée” [1] [fr] means for french speaking black communities. Tchip is the sound one makes when he/she disapproves of the behavior/action of someone else (roughly similar to the “shaking my head” [2] internet slang). The “Tchip” sound is used across most black communities and has become an internet meme:

Will Smith as the animated illustration of the sound "Tchip" by the blog La Tchipie - Public Domain [3]

Will Smith as the animated illustration of the sound “Tchip” by the blog La Tchipie [4] – Public Domain