For its WotY, Dictionies.com has selected “6-7” from its list of contenders for terms capturing the Zeitgeist of language and culture over the past twelve months, not just about confusion, neologism or popularity but moreover as a socio-linguistic mirror to visage. In the shortlist of other reference authorities, the meme, phrase and accompanying hand gestures from a nonsense lyric in a song by Philadelphia rapper Skrilla, titled “Doot Doot (Six-Seven).”
And while grammarians have tried to apply several interpretations as to its meaning and etymology—from a reference to a street in the artist’s hometown or police code, which despite being incorrect have increased its rather enduring lore as opposed to recent marketing campaigns by fast food franchises and rumours that the next AI model will be called GPT-6-7 (surely a sign the trend is about to plummet)—it is genuinely a meaningless phrase though positive among cohorts who can share it together. The Wikipedia entry for the much older, fourteenth century English idiom to describe a situation in disarray—“at sixes and sevens”—from the proto-version of gambling dice game craps called hazard has not been updated to reflect this new phenomenon.
synchronoptica
one year ago: the events that inspired The Wicker Man (with synchronopticรฆ), an ancient amulet discovered, a thousand days of the war on Ukraine, shifting through default video titles plus Mister Plow (1992)
twelve years ago: digital footprints
thirteen years ago: market bubbles
fourteen years ago: in for a penny, in for a pound
fifteen years ago: free-range exoplanets
sixteen years ago: preppers and doubters
