Gen Z’s influence seems to be rizzing into aspects many wouldn’t guess. Recently the Oxford University Press has named “rizz″ its word of the year, beating out the three other finalists “prompt,” “situationship,” and “Swiftie.”
For some of you who don’t have rizz, you may be asking yourself what is “rizz” and where does it come from. Well, “rizz” is short for charisma. It is defined as “style, charm, or attractiveness; the ability to attract a romantic or sexual partner” (Oxford University Press). The popularity of “rizz” can be attributed to Kia Cenat, a twitch streamer who popularized the usage of the word in his online videos. This led to others copying that format of videos and creating their own, blowing up the usage of “rizz” in the media people consume each day. Rizz’s popularity grew even larger when famous actor Tom Holland used it in an interview. All of those factors lead “rizz” to be incorporated into the vocabulary of many world wide.
This growth of “rizz” proves the power that social media has. Just from online videos, “rizz” has become one of my most popular words in today’s adolescent vernacular. The word “rizz” has only been documented in the past three years, but its inclusion in the dictionary and its selection as Oxford’s “Word of the Year,” showcases its immense popularity.
Rizz’s main competitor for Word of the Year was “Swiftie,” which stands for the fandom of American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. Taylor Swift’s popularity is undeniable as she has been popular for around 20 years and just recently held the highest-grossing U.S. and North American tour ever which was projected to make more than $800 million. The moniker “Swiftie” is everywhere in pop culture, so the fact that “rizz” was selected as Word of the Year, shows just how meteoric its rise in usage has been.
The unexpected victory of “rizz” as Oxford’s Word of the Year truly demonstrates the power of social media and Gen Z’s influence. The rapid increase in popularity of the word shows the evolution of how news and culture is spread in today’s age.