Next May 25 is Geek Pride Day. If you also consider yourself a geek, like us, you probably already knew this and are already thinking about how you will celebrate it this year. But did you also know how this day originated? One more question from us: do you know what kind of geek you are? If you are one of those who still need to explore more about this geek world, we recommend you keep reading this post because it will answer these and other questions.
To understand the birth of this unique date, we have to look back more than four decades. It was on May 25, 1977, when premiered in the United States Star Wars. Episode IV: A New Hope. This was the first film of the internationally and intergenerationally popular saga Star Wars.
On this same date, May 25, other curious and interesting anniversaries coincide. For example, since 2001, the Towel Day, which pays tribute to the writer of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams. This science fiction work highlights the importance of the towel as an essential companion for any good galactic hitchhiker.
Also, fans of the saga Discworld, by the author Terry Pratchett, celebrate The Magnificent May 25, in tribute to the 29th novel of this narrative world called Night Watch.
And geeks arrive in Spain
In this context of the international geek scene, a group of people led by the Spanish blogger Germán Martínez, Señor Buebo, also chose May 25, 2006, to claim that science fiction, fantasy, comics, and all popular culture fiction products deserved to be celebrated with pride.
Throughout these 16 editions, this movement has gained more and more influence in the entertainment and merchandising industry. To give you just one example, in 2009, two major television phenomena for series lovers decided to air their final episodes on the same day that Geek Pride Day was celebrated: Game of Thrones and Big Bang Theory.
Evolution of the term geek: from deformities to fanaticism
We can first talk about the etymological origin of the English term freak. In the 19th century, it was used to refer to people who suffered from physical deformities and often worked in circuses. Also, thanks to the movie Freaks, translated into Spanish as Freaks¸ of
Origin of geek culture
At the etymological level, the English word freak, from which the word geek comes, began to be used in the 19th century to refer to people who suffered physical deformities and who usually worked in traveling circuses. Also, the film Freaksdirected by Tod Browning in 1932, helped to spread this term further, which ended up evolving into the Spanish words geek or geek.
If we turn to the Dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy, this vocabulary authority of our country records the following meanings for geek:
- adj. colloq. Eccentric, strange, or odd.
- m. and f. colloq. A colorful and eccentric person.
- m. and f. colloq. A person who practices a hobby excessively and obsessively.
We have already seen then that, popularly, it is considered geek aThat person who feels fascinated by some type of popular culture, fiction, technology, or any artistic movement that deviates from the conventional. What has been happening since the late 20th century and early 21st century is that more and more people identify with this urban tribe with very diverse characteristics and very different tastes. So much so that today practically all of us carry a geek inside us. To find out what type of geek you are, here is a list of the main types of geeks that exist today:
Geek
This is the type of geek who is up to date with gadgets and the latest technology. They like everything related to this world and know about PCs, smartphones, tablets… As expected, they are very active in forums and closely follow the latest news in the technology industry on the Internet.
Hacker
A great enthusiast and expert in software, capable of performing super-advanced searches on the Internet and finding on the web what no one with average internet knowledge could find. Although they tend to always be willing to share information and their knowledge with others, many have to face the stigma of being 'cybercriminals.'
Gamer
One of the most populous and well-known in recent years. In this group, we find fans of consoles and video games. They know everything about screen resolutions and graphics, they know all the video game tricks, and they know the stories behind each one: from the creators, the company responsible for its development, to the chapters and sagas of a title…
Otaku
The term Otaku refers to lovers of Japanese anime series and manga. They know countless animations and Japanese studios.
Cosplayer
Cosplayers are that group of fans of video games, anime, series, or books who attend conventions dressed as some of their various characters. They invest a lot of time, money, and effort into these costumes to look like their favorite characters. Some have managed to turn their passion into a career and made it their profession.
Collector
Because of its name, it’s not hard to understand the modus operandi of this group. The collector geek dedicates themselves to buying many items from any franchise and displaying them without opening their packaging, unsealing, or taking them out of their box. That is precisely what’s important about these items; the collector only accumulates them, although sometimes they may sell them since it’s common for them to reach prices higher than the originals.
Comic book fan
The comic book geek is also very easy to identify: they are great lovers of comics. They can be loyal followers of a specific franchise, whether Marvel, DC, or any smaller one; or they can be fans of all of them if they have a more general profile. At the same time, they can follow different collecting styles and choose to get complete series or only certain special issues.
Other types of geeks
Geeks are all those who are here; but not all who are, are here. And this is because there are many other groups of people who are fans of role-playing games or TV shows, or also of creating their own figures or the k-pop music trend.
We join the Geek Pride Day movement by showing our cutest “geeky” side, and for that, on May 25th we’re giving away one of our SOUND PUP for purchases on our website and free shipping! Check the terms at www.spc.es.
Have you found the type of geek you are in this list? If you’re not among them all, enlighten us and share your hobby with us on our social media, we’re sure to discover many new things we didn’t know about other types of geeks!
