Our avid readers will know how much we love memes here at Bored Panda, from science memes, viral 2020 memes, and very literal memes to more specific memes like jokes and memes for women to relate to and car memes to laugh at while you’re stuck in traffic. Because memes are the unofficial language of the internet and if you haven’t been off to the moon lately, you’ll surely know how to speak a word or two.
So this time, we have a special treat for your inner nerd or anyone who missed that once-in-a-lifetime chance to make their history teacher proud. Yep, we’re talking dates, events, and contexts that happened either far back or quite recently in the past.
Welcome to the history memes fueled by the r/HistoryMemes subreddit, where a whopping 2.7M members and self-confessed history experts crack jokes about the old days. Scroll down and upvote your favorites!
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I See What U Did There
Daaaaayumm! He ain’t wrong though. I live 2.5 miles from 800 year old rock paintings. Lord knows what my property use to be.
Selective Breeding
A Joke Book From 1940
Internet memes have been a widely used visual form of online rhetoric since the early 2000s. Today they have become a prominent method of communication across the internet, but as a research subject, they're still not very well-examined.
With 20 years of communicating in memes, we still don’t know their exact implications, says Rebecca Ortiz, an assistant professor of advertising at the Newhouse School. “Research on internet meme effects is still in its infancy. But we can look to past media effects research to hypothesize how people may be influenced by them.”
But At Least They Have The Cool Building With All The Flags In It
Professionals Have Standards
Not The Tea
We should never underestimate the power that social media and the content that’s surfing there has on our beliefs, identities, and culture. “The most shareable content on social media will reach the most people and potentially have the greatest effect,” she said.
Think of memes as bits of humor that capture shared cultural meanings and speak to some of the largest audience on our planet. “[They] are some of the most shareable pieces of content on social media and therefore they deserve scrutiny and better understanding as to how they may influence us,” Ortiz explained.
In that sense, understanding a meme is a way to bond with people and feel a strong sense of community. We as humans are wired to do so, so memes are the perfect gateway to that.
History Repeats Itself
So Much Spice!
"I receive spice. You receive... Asturias. Burgundy. Tuscana. And seven tons of gold. Add some cinnamon and I add the real crown of thorns."
Scientifically Proven
They Here Cause You Dragged Them Her
We also see this in the Netherlands now with Turkish and Morrocan people who were actually brought here in the 60s because the Dutch workforce was too small
If You Don't Believe Me Look At China Right Now
Black Panther Flashbacks
To be honest they can keep ours. We can't keep them safe and no one even comes to visit us.
UK Is Like Belgium
I Dont Think You Want
Enslaving People Because Of Color Skin? Absolutely Barbaric!
Yeah, I always wondered how this can't be a major issue? I mean privately run for-profit prisons with forced labor, combined with "three-strike" policies that jail's people even for misdemeans...
Load More Replies...If you have a big enough debt, you are not a borrower, you are a partner
Load More Replies...This is pretty big nonsense actually. The Ottoman empire got its slaves from Eastern Europe as well as Africa, the Roman word "slave" also comes from "Slav", meaning Slavic peoples. These kinds of empires were al opportunity slave traders and just took whoever they could get. The same goes for slavery in teh Americas. The natives died in too great numbers to enslave them, so slavers turned to Africa, where there was already a well established centuries old slave trade (see Ottoman sources). Slavery being tied to race was a very late development and almost entirely by chance.
Eh... slave isn't a Latin word. The Latin word for slave is "servus". Which, for some reason, is a common greeting in many European countries.
Load More Replies...So much hypocracy. Western countries have simply outsourced their slavery. It's in the clothes you buy. It's in the phones and computers you use to extol the virtues of your domestic socialistic labor policies that are used to ensure your own standard of living is propped up above the rest of the poorer world.
Yes, absolutely. It is much better to enslave them because they are slaves.
The Roman Empire was actually a surprisingly advanced culture. They had running water. In Ancient Rome. *Applauds* Also other stuff.
Can't forget the aruments that lump all radically different systems of slavery into one. Comparing Middle Passage chattel slavery to Aztec slavery for example just proves you know almost nothing about either of them.
"slowly starving to death while being worked to their bones" Hmmm, what does this remind me of....oh right, slavery.
Load More Replies...Ah, Good Times
I am from the region actually. Very true, unfortunately. Nevertheless, apart from mildly to largely racist jerks in power on all sides, we are beautiful countries with great people. Worth visiting.
What A Nice Little White Girl
Just Make Up Your Mind!
And yet the USA isn't defined as a terrorist nation.That title is reserved for the rest of us.
*laughs In Nazi Gold*
Swiss is like "Si vis pacem prepara bellum" (if you want peace be ready for the war)
Life's A Witch
Also Forgot To Mention Hera Was His Sister...still A Classic Though
Well rape and incest are not really on "on brand" for Disney, though dead parents certainly are. Which makes one wonder why they chose Greek mythology as source material at all.
Oh Well Its Not Like We Can Do Anything About That
History happened, you can't change that, learn from it and move forward. "Those who forget history are doomed to repeat it"
"George, I've Just Noticed Something..."
A Rare Glimpse Of A History Meme In The Wild
She is so bad she has been re-elected every time since... well... Almost forever.
A Toast To The Irish
This Country Is Gonna Be Lit!
Funny thing: when they wrote that they pictured muskets. Never would they have imagined an AK47
Literally Grave Robbers
At least when the British museum got hold of things, they were preserved, not destroyed or sold on the black market?
The Madlad
I am italian - if one of our president would have done such a thing we claimed it as a miracle... (Our president of republics are always old people)
Ratatouille’s Revenge
Where's one of those group shots of trump, Cruz and McConnell standing in front of a flag?
This Is In The Book I’m Reading
God Is An Englishman
The weather is terrible is all you need to know! So all hands on board and let's conquer a few sunny countries. 😂😂😂
I’m So Lucky
The Grand Tour Has A Lot Of Meme Potential
Guten Tag, Polen
It’s Not Even Close Really
One Of Our Fellow Scholars
This is so sad on so many levels. Women's rights are non existent in Turkey. Except for Melek Ipek who was acquitted for murdering her abusive husband, probably only because of the power of social media.
Belgian History 101
All Road Lead To Rome
Oh No
"Do I look stupid with a mask on?" "Is the Spanish Flu real or a hoax made up by Henry Ford?"
Coincidence? I Think Not
Are you really certain the doves were so innocent? They certainly have a lot to do with a coo 😁
So True
Sparta, This Is
Manifest Destiny Be Like
Quick Fake China Is Asleep! Up-Vote Flag Of Real China
Faked Their Deaths
Before they were hired by the USA to work in the space and tech industries.
Not Sure If This Has Been Done Before
Yeah, Someone Definitely Used A Ruler To Draw Some Of These Borders
Not Cool Andrew Jackson
We See Through Your Disguise, Himmler
Are We The Baddies?
Note: this post originally had 129 images. It’s been shortened to the top 50 images based on user votes.
Very funny, but lots of them rely on inaccurate or very generalizing history "knowledge"
BP titled it "To Prove That The Best Way To Learn History Is Through Memes" --- hint: no, it's not.
Load More Replies...I can relate to the last one(Jewish so everyone looks at you). My friends ask me questions that I don’t know the answer to because my grandmother grew up Jewish.
Hint: people can up- and downvote, so the last place probably changes continuously.
Load More Replies...I enjoyed all the commentaries and answers of BP readers from different nations. That is why I'm here. Love it!
I think they overplayed the whole imperialism/slavery/genocide trope. Yes, it happened, but it's not any of our faults (now in the 21st century) and there's a lot more to history then just that.
These are not funny but horrible. Actually made me sick reading them. So many inaccuracies, and misspellings. Please remove this feed.
but does it have any history memes on it? how am i supposed to learn when my shirt is only luxurious and colorful???
Load More Replies...Very funny, but lots of them rely on inaccurate or very generalizing history "knowledge"
BP titled it "To Prove That The Best Way To Learn History Is Through Memes" --- hint: no, it's not.
Load More Replies...I can relate to the last one(Jewish so everyone looks at you). My friends ask me questions that I don’t know the answer to because my grandmother grew up Jewish.
Hint: people can up- and downvote, so the last place probably changes continuously.
Load More Replies...I enjoyed all the commentaries and answers of BP readers from different nations. That is why I'm here. Love it!
I think they overplayed the whole imperialism/slavery/genocide trope. Yes, it happened, but it's not any of our faults (now in the 21st century) and there's a lot more to history then just that.
These are not funny but horrible. Actually made me sick reading them. So many inaccuracies, and misspellings. Please remove this feed.
but does it have any history memes on it? how am i supposed to learn when my shirt is only luxurious and colorful???
Load More Replies...