HTTP/1.1 200 OK
Server: Microsoft-IIS/5.0
Date: Sat, 11 Feb 2012 06:34:59 GMT
Connection: Keep-Alive
Content-Length: 23449
Content-Type: text/html
Cache-control: private

<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">

<HTML XMLNS="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" >
<HEAD>
  <TITLE>snopes.com: Glossary</TITLE>
  <LINK HREF="/style.css" REL="stylesheet" TYPE="text/css">
  <META NAME="robots" CONTENT="NOINDEX,NOFOLLOW,NOARCHIVE">
  <META name="description" content="A glossary of terms relating to folklore and snopes.com.">
  <META name="keywords" content="glossary, snopes, glurge, urban legends archive, hoaxes, scams, rumors, urban myths, folklore, hoax slayer, mythbusters, misinformation, snopes">
  <LINK rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml" href="http://www.snopes.com/info/whatsnew.xml" title="RSS feed for snopes.com">
</HEAD>

<script type="text/javascript" src="http://apis.google.com/js/plusone.js"></script>

<SCRIPT language="JavaScript">
if (window!=top){top.location.href=location.href;}
</SCRIPT>



<BODY>
<DIV CLASS="siteWrapper">
  <TABLE CLASS="siteHeader" CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0">
    <TR>
      <TD CLASS="logo"><A HREF="http://www.snopes.com"><IMG SRC="/images/template/snopes.gif" ALT="snopes.com"></A></TD>
      <TD>
        <TABLE CLASS="features">
          <TR>
            <TD CLASS="topAdvertisement">

<!--



-->




<CENTER>

<iframe src="http://www.snopes.com/common/include/casalebanner.asp" width="728" height="90" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" name="I2"></iframe>

</CENTER>

</TD>
          </TR>
          <TR>
            <TD CLASS="searchArea">
              <TABLE CLASS="searchBox" ALIGN="RIGHT">
                <TR>
                    <TD VALIGN=TOP><IMG SRC="/images/search-hdr.gif" ALT="Search"></TD>
                    <TD VALIGN=TOP>
                      <FORM METHOD="GET" ACTION="http://search.atomz.com/search/"><INPUT TYPE=TEXT WIDTH=50 SIZE=60 ID="searchbox" NAME="sp-q">
                    </TD>
                    <TD>
                      <INPUT TYPE=IMAGE SRC="/images/search-btn-go.gif">
                      <INPUT TYPE=HIDDEN NAME="sp-a" VALUE="00062d45-sp00000000">
                      <INPUT TYPE=HIDDEN NAME="sp-advanced" VALUE=1>
                      <INPUT TYPE=HIDDEN NAME="sp-p" VALUE="all">
                      <INPUT TYPE=HIDDEN NAME="sp-w-control" VALUE=1>
                      <INPUT TYPE=HIDDEN NAME="sp-w" VALUE="alike">
                      <INPUT TYPE=HIDDEN NAME="sp-date-range" VALUE=-1>
                      <INPUT TYPE=HIDDEN NAME="sp-x" VALUE="any">
                      <INPUT TYPE=HIDDEN NAME="sp-c" VALUE=100>
                      <INPUT TYPE=HIDDEN NAME="sp-m" VALUE=1>
                      <INPUT TYPE=HIDDEN NAME="sp-s" VALUE=0>
                      </FORM>
                    </TD>
                  </TR>
                </TABLE>
               </TD>
              </TR>
            </TABLE>
           </TD>
          </TR>
        </TABLE>

        <TABLE CLASS="siteMenu" CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0">
          <TR>
<TD><A HREF="/info/whatsnew.asp" onMouseOver="window.status='What\'s New';return true" onMouseOut="window.status='';return true"><IMG SRC="/images/menu-whats-new.gif" ALT="What's New"></A><A HREF="/info/random/random.asp"><IMG SRC="/images/menu-randomizer.gif" ALT="Randomizer"></A><A HREF="/info/top25uls.asp"><IMG SRC="/images/menu-hot-25.gif" ALT="Hot 25"></A><A HREF="/info/faq.asp"><IMG SRC="/images/menu-faq.gif" ALT="FAQ"></A><A HREF="/daily/"><IMG SRC="/images/menu-odd-news.gif" ALT="Odd News"></A><A HREF="/info/glossary.asp"><IMG SRC="/images/menu-glossary.gif" ALT="Glossary"></A><A HREF="/info/newsletter.asp"><IMG SRC="/images/menu-newsletter.gif" ALT="Newsletter"></A><A HREF="http://message.snopes.com" TARGET=message><IMG SRC="/images/menu-message-board.gif" ALT="Message Board"></A></TD>
          </TR>
        </TABLE>
<NOINDEX>

        <TABLE CLASS="siteSubMenu" CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0">
          <TD>
          <TD WIDTH="534" CLASS="breadcrumbs"><A HREF='/snopes.asp'>Home</A> > Glossary</TD>
          <TD WIDTH="420" CLASS="links"><A HREF="http://www.snopes.com/cgi-bin/comments/webmail.asp" onMouseOver="window.status='Contact Us';return true" onMouseOut="window.status='';return true" TARGET=mail><IMG SRC="/images/sub-menu-contact-us.gif" ALT="Contact Us"></A><A HREF="http://www.snopes.com/cgi-bin/comments/webmail.asp" onMouseOver="window.status='Submit a Rumor';return true" onMouseOut="window.status='';return true" TARGET=mail><IMG SRC="/images/sub-menu-submit-rumor.gif" ALT="Submit a Rumor"></A><A HREF="http://www.snopes.com/cgi-bin/comments/photovideo.asp" onMouseOver="window.status='Submit a Photo/Video';return true" onMouseOut="window.status='';return true" TARGET=photo><IMG SRC="/images/sub-menu-submit-photo.gif" ALT="Submit a Photo/Video"></A>
          </TD>
         </TR>
        </TABLE>
</NOINDEX>
        <TABLE CLASS="siteContent" CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0">
          <TR>
            <TD CLASS="contentArea">
              <TABLE CLASS="threeColumn" CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0">
                <TR VALIGN="TOP">


              <TD CLASS="navColumn">

                <DIV CLASS="navHeader">CATEGORIES:</DIV>
                <UL>
                  <LI><A HREF="/autos/autos.asp">Autos</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/business/business.asp">Business</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/cokelore/cokelore.asp">Cokelore</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/college/college.asp">College</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/computer/computer.asp">Computers</A></LI>
                </UL>
                <DIV CLASS="navSpacer"> &nbsp; </DIV>
                <UL>
                  <LI><A HREF="/crime/crime.asp">Crime</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/critters/critters.asp">Critter Country</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/disney/disney.asp">Disney</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/embarrass/embarrass.asp">Embarrassments</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/photos/photos.asp">Fauxtography</A></LI>
                </UL>
                <DIV CLASS="navSpacer"> &nbsp; </DIV>
                <UL>
                  <LI><A HREF="/food/food.asp">Food</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/fraud/fraud.asp">Fraud & Scams</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/glurge/glurge.asp">Glurge Gallery</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/history/history.asp">History</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/holidays/holidays.asp">Holidays</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/horrors/horrors.asp">Horrors</A></LI>
                </UL>
                <DIV CLASS="navSpacer"> &nbsp; </DIV>
                <UL>
                  <LI><A HREF="/humor/humor.asp">Humor</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/inboxer/inboxer.asp">Inboxer Rebellion</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/language/language.asp">Language</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/legal/legal.asp">Legal</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/lost/lost.asp">Lost Legends</A></LI>
                </UL>
                <DIV CLASS="navSpacer"> &nbsp; </DIV>
                <UL>
                  <LI><A HREF="/love/love.asp">Love</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/luck/luck.asp">Luck</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/media/media.asp">Media Matters</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/medical/medical.asp">Medical</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/military/military.asp">Military</A></LI>
                </UL>
                <DIV CLASS="navSpacer"> &nbsp; </DIV>
                <UL>
                  <LI><A HREF="/movies/movies.asp">Movies</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/music/music.asp">Music</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/oldwives/oldwives.asp">Old Wives' Tales</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/politics/politics.asp">Politics</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/pregnant/pregnant.asp">Pregnancy</A></LI>
                </UL>
                <DIV CLASS="navSpacer"> &nbsp; </DIV>
                <UL>
                  <LI><A HREF="/quotes/quotes.asp">Quotes</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/racial/racial.asp">Racial Rumors</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/radiotv/radiotv.asp">Radio & TV</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/religion/religion.asp">Religion</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/risque/risque.asp">Risqu� Business</A></LI>
                </UL>
                <DIV CLASS="navSpacer"> &nbsp; </DIV>
                <UL>
                  <LI><A HREF="/science/science.asp">Science</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/rumors/rumors.asp">September 11</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/sports/sports.asp">Sports</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/travel/travel.asp">Travel</A></LI>
                  <LI><A HREF="/weddings/weddings.asp">Weddings</A></LI>
                </UL>
              </TD>


                  <TD CLASS="contentColumn" ALIGN=LEFT>

                    <DIV CLASS ="utilityLinks">

<A HREF="mailto:Insert address(es) here?subject=Glossary&body=I thought you might find the following article from snopes.com interesting: http://snopes.com/info/glossary.asp" onMouseOver="window.status='E-mail this page';return true" onMouseOut="window.status='';return true"><IMG SRC="/images/envelope.gif" ALT="E-mail this page"></A>  <A HREF="mailto:Insert address(es) here?subject=Glossary&body=I thought you might find the following article from snopes.com interesting: http://snopes.com/info/glossary.asp" onMouseOver="window.status='E-mail this page';return true" onMouseOut="window.status='';return true"><FONT SIZE=2 COLOR=#0000FF>E-mail this</FONT></A>

&nbsp;  &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;


<!-- code goes here -->
 


        <div class="pw_widget  pw_size_32">
            <a class="pw_googleplus"></a>
            <a class="pw_facebook"></a>
            <a class="pw_twitter"></a>
            <a class="pw_email"></a>
        </div>
        <script type="text/javascript" src="http://i.po.st/share/script/post-widget.js#publisherKey=snopescom1152"></script>

<!-- code goes here -->


                    </DIV>
<BR>
                    <H1>Glossary</H1>

<STYLE TYPE="text/css">
<!--
 A:link, A:visited, A:active { text-decoration: underline; }
 A:link {color: #0000FF;}
 A:visited {color: #5fa505;}
 A:hover {color: #FF0000;} 
 .article_text {text-align: justify;} 
-->
</STYLE>

<DIV CLASS="article_text">      

                          
<FONT FACE="Verdana" SIZE=2>

<FONT FACE=""COLOR=#000000>
This page provides definitions for a number of terms visitors to snopes.com might be unfamiliar with. Some of these terms come from the field of folklore, but others are specific to this site. We hope this additional information helps you enjoy the site better.
</FONT>

<BR><BR>

<FONT COLOR=>
<B>Myth vs. Legend</B>
</FONT>
<BR><BR>
Though these two terms are often used interchangably, they have separate and specific meanings to folklorists. Both myths and legends are stories with casts of characters and plotlines followed to their conclusions, yet their core elements are different. Myths are tales about the acts of godlike or supernatural beings and/or magical animals which serve to explain the creation of the world or how certain elements of our world came to be (e.g., how the raccoon got its mask) and take place in the far reaches of time (often expressed as "In the days when the world was new"). By contrast, legends are accounts of purported incidents involving ordinary people in more recent times. Although both types of stories are told as true, they are not necessarily believed to be literal truth by either the tellers or their audiences. 
<BR><BR>
<FONT COLOR=>
<A NAME="urban"></A>
<B>Urban legend</B>
</FONT>
<BR><BR>
Urban legends are a specific class of legend, differentiated from "ordinary" legends by their being provided and believed as accounts of actual incidents that befell or were witnessed by someone the teller almost knows (e.g., his sister's hairdresser's mechanic). These tales are told as true, local, and recent occurrences, and often contain names of places or entities located within the teller's neighborhood or surrounding region.
<BR><BR>
Urban legends are narratives which put our fears and concerns into the form of stories or are tales which we use to confirm the rightness of our world view. As cautionary tales they warn us against engaging in risky behaviors by pointing out what has supposedly happened to others who did what we might be tempted to 


try. Other legends confirm our belief that it's a big, bad world out there, one awash with crazed killers, lurking terrorists, unscrupulous companies out to make a buck at any cost, and a government that doesn't give a damn. 
<BR><BR>
Folks commonly equate 'urban legend' with 'false' (i.e., "Oh, that's an urban legend!"). Though the vast majority of such tales are pure invention, a handful do turn out to be based on real incidents, and whether or not something actually happened has no bearing on its status as an urban legend. What lifts true tales of this type out of the world of news and into the genre of contemporary lore is the blurring of details and multiplicity of claims that the events happened locally, alterations which take place as the stories are passed through countless hands. Though there might indeed have been an original actual event, it clearly did not happen to as many people or in as many places as the various recountings of it would have us believe. 
<BR><BR>
For further information about the definition of the term, <A HREF="ul-def.asp"
onMouseOver="window.status='Further definition of the term';return true"
onMouseOut="window.status='';return true" TARGET=legends>click here</A>.
<BR><BR>
<FONT COLOR=>
<A NAME="ostension"></A>
<B>Ostension</B>
</FONT>
<BR><BR>
Ostension is a folkloric term for the process of unwittingly acting out or mimicking the greater part (if not the entirety) of an urban legend that is already part of the body of lore. More simply, if the events described in an urban legend which had been around since 1950 actually did indeed spontaneously play out in real life in 1992, that would be an example of ostension. 
<BR><BR>
For example, author Douglas Adams tells the "<A HREF="/crime/safety/cookies.asp" onMouseOver="window.status='The Stolen Biscuits';return true" onMouseOut="window.status='';return true" TARGET=cookies><NOBR>packet of biscuits</NOBR></A>" tale in his 1984 novel, <I>So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish</I>, and has since recounted the anecdote on numerous occasions, claiming it happened to him in 1976 at a station in Cambridge. Yet even if we believe his is a true account (celebrities have been known to star themselves or their close acquaintances in urban legends &mdash; the "<A HREF="/horrors/gruesome/haredry.asp" onMouseOver="window.status='The Hare Dryer';return true" onMouseOut="window.status='';return true" TARGET=haredry><NOBR>dead rabbit</NOBR></A> replaced" tale has been claimed by Johnny Carson of his neighbor, William Shatner of his <NOBR>co-author,</NOBR> and actor Michael Landon and singer Marc Anthony of themselves), his experience only copied a legend that was already in existence, because that same tale had been circulated in Great Britain since at least 1972. 
<BR><BR>
Pseudo-ostension is the act of <i>deliberately</i> acting out an existing urban legend (e.g., children secreting <A HREF="/horrors/mayhem/needles.asp" onMouseOver="window.status='Pins and Needles';return true" onMouseOut="window.status='';return true" TARGET=needles>pins</A> in their Halloween treats to throw a scare into the community or pranksters in Pulaski, Virginia, placing <A HREF="/horrors/mayhem/payphone.asp" onMouseOver="window.status='Slots of Fun';return true" onMouseOut="window.status='';return true" TARGET=payphone>syringes</A> in payphone coin return slots in 1999).
<BR><BR>
<FONT COLOR=>
<A NAME="slack"></A>
<B>Slacktivism</B>
</FONT>
<BR><BR>
We can't claim credit for having coined this term, nor do we know its actual origin, but we love it nonetheless. Slacktivism is the search for the ultimate feel-good 

<TABLE ALIGN=RIGHT CELLPADDING=12 BORDER=0><TR><TD>



<!--



-->



<CENTER>


<iframe src="http://www.snopes.com/common/include/casalebox.asp" width="300" height="250" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" name="I3"></iframe>

</CENTER>



</TD></TR></TABLE>

that derives from having come to society's rescue without actually getting one's hands dirty, volunteering any of one's time, or opening one's wallet. It's slacktivism 
that prompts us to forward appeals for business cards on behalf of a dying child intent upon having his name recorded in the Guinness World Book of Records or 



exhortations to others to continue circulating a particular <NOBR>e-mail</NOBR> because some big company has supposedly promised that every forward will generate monies for the care of a languishing tot. Likewise, it's slacktivism that prompts us to want to join a boycott of designated gas companies or eschew buying gasoline on a particular day rather than reduce our personal consumption of fossil fuels by driving less and taking the bus more often. Slacktivism comes in many forms, but its defining characteristic is its central theme of doing good with little or no effort on the part of the person inspired to participate, through the mechanisms of forwarding, exhorting, collecting, or <NOBR>e-signing.</NOBR> 
<BR><BR>
Our essay on the ineffectiveness of Internet  <A HREF="/inboxer/petition/internet.asp" onMouseOver="window.status='Internet Petitions';return true" onMouseOut="window.status='';return true" TARGET=petition>petitions</A> delves further into the topic.
<BR><BR>
<FONT COLOR=>
<A NAME="glurge"></A>
<B>Glurge</B>
</FONT>
<BR><BR>
Glurge is a term specific to snopes.com, coined in 1998. Already in its short lifespan it has reached across the Internet and has appeared in the print media a number of times, and it may well soon make the final breakthrough by appearing in dictionaries as a bona fide entry. The word was invented by Patricia Chapin, a member of the urban legends discussion mailing list run in conjunction with this site. At a loss for words to describe the retching sensation this then-unnamed category of stories subjected her to, she fashioned a word that simultaneously named the genre and described its effect.
<BR><BR>
Glurge (a term which can be used to describe one story or applied to the genre as a whole) is the body of inspirational tales which conceal much darker meanings than the uplifting moral lessons they purport to offer, and which undermine their messages by fabricating and distorting historical fact in the guise of offering "true stories." Glurge often contains such heart-tugging elements as sad-eyed puppies, sweet-faced children, angels, dying mothers, or miraculous rescues brought about by prayer. These stories are meant to be parables for modern times but fall far short of the mark. Our <A HREF="/glurge/glurge.asp" onMouseOver="window.status='Glurge Gallery';return true" onMouseOut="window.status='';return true" TARGET=glurge><NOBR>Glurge Gallery</NOBR></A> links to all the glurge any human could stand.
<BR><BR>
<FONT COLOR=>
<A NAME="snopes"></A>
<B>Snopes</B>
</FONT>
<BR><BR>
The Snopes were a family of characters weaved throughout the works of Nobel Prize-winning American writer William Faulkner.  When David Mikkelson, creator of snopes.com, first came onto the Internet in the late 1980s, he worried even back in those relatively uncrowded days that no one would remember yet another David.  He was thus inspired to adopt a nom-de-Net, selecting one that honored those fictional Faulknerian characters, and began signing his newsgroups posts as "snopes."
<BR><BR>
Over the years snopes established a fearsome online reputation for his ability to thoroughly research and debunk false claims.  When it came time to name our domain, www.snopes.com seemed the obvious choice.
<BR><BR>
As to how to pronounce "snopes," the word rhymes with "soaps."
<BR><BR>
<FONT COLOR=>
<A NAME="trope"></A>
<B>Trope or Internym</B>
</FONT>
<BR><BR>
Either term can be employed to describe the oddball "middle names" Barbara Mikkelson uses in signing her articles. These are a carryover from her days of posting to newsgroups on the Internet where such manner of signoff was customary. 
<BR><BR>
Some favorite tropes can be found on:
<BR>
<UL TYPE="DISC">
<LI> <A HREF="/horrors/robbery/kidney2.asp" onMouseOver="window.status='Organ Nicked: Vegetable';return true"
onMouseOut="window.status='';return true" TARGET=kidney>Organ Nicked: Vegetable</A> (kidney theft legend). </LI>
<BR><BR>
<LI> <A HREF="/religion/wellhell.asp" onMouseOver="window.status='Well to Hell';return true"
onMouseOut="window.status='';return true" TARGET=wellhell>The Well to Hell</A> (screams of the damned issue from deep hole).</LI> 
<BR><BR>
<LI> <A HREF="/horrors/food/semen.asp" onMouseOver="window.status='Secret Sauce';return true"
onMouseOut="window.status='';return true" TARGET=semen>Secret Sauce</A> (HIV-laden semen in restaurant food).</LI> 
</UL>
</FONT>
<BR>
<CENTER><FONT FACE='Verdana' SIZE=2 COLOR='#5FA505'>Urban Legends Reference Pages &copy; 1995-2012 by Barbara and David P. Mikkelson. <BR> This material may not be reproduced without permission. <BR> snopes and the snopes.com logo are registered service marks of snopes.com.</FONT></CENTER>
<BR>

<CENTER><IMG SRC="/images/content-divider.gif"></CENTER>
                    <CENTER><CENTER>
<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
google_ad_client = "pub-6608306193529351";
google_ad_width = 468;
google_ad_height = 60;
google_ad_format = "468x60_as";
google_ad_type = "text";
google_ad_channel = "0054321535";
google_color_border = "000000";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript"
  src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js">
</script>
</CENTER>
</CENTER>
                  </TD>
                  <TD class="adColumn">


<!--



<CENTER>

<iframe src="http://www.snopes.com/common/include/adsdaqsky_f.asp" width="160" height="600" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" name="I3"></iframe>

</CENTER>



-->



<CENTER>

<script type="text/javascript">
<!--
   e9 = new Object();
   e9.size = "120x600,160x600";
//-->
</script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="http://tags.expo9.exponential.com/tags/UrbanLegends/ROS/tags.js"></script>


</CENTER>

</TD>
                </TR>
              </TABLE>
            </TD>
          </TR>
        </TABLE>
   <DIV CLASS="siteBottom"> &nbsp; </DIV>
  </DIV>

  <DIV class="siteFooterGradient">&nbsp;</DIV>




<script type="text/javascript"><!--
var casaleD=new Date();var casaleR=(casaleD.getTime()%8673806982)+Math.random();
var casaleU=escape(window.location.href);
var casaleHost=' type="text/javascript" src="http://as.casalemedia.com/s?s=';
document.write('<scr'+'ipt'+casaleHost+'81847&amp;u=');
document.write(casaleU+'&amp;f=1&amp;id='+casaleR+'"><\/scr'+'ipt>');
//-->
</script>

<!--

-->



<!--

-->


</BODY>
</HTML>
