Meaning
An extremely devoted fan of a celebrity, franchise, or fictional character; also a verb meaning to admire or support with that intensity. Originally derogatory, implying obsessive behaviour, it has softened into a boast or compliment, often in the first-person plural when fans celebrate an idol. Informal; strongest in pop-music, sports, and online fandom contexts, and it can still carry a sting when applied to genuinely invasive fans. Informal fandom slang; usually playful praise now, but still implies intensity bordering on obsession. Regional use: General English online; global through pop-culture fandoms.
Origin
The accepted source is Stan, the 2000 Eminem single featuring Dido, whose title character is an obsessive fan whose letters turn threatening. The word is often described as a blend of stalker and fan, but that reading is unconfirmed; the song is the documented origin. It spread through 2000s internet forums and fan communities as both noun and verb, and specific fandoms developed their own stan names, such as Swifties. The Oxford English Dictionary added it in June 2017, and Merriam-Webster, having tracked it in its Words We're Watching series, entered it in April 2019 among a batch of 640 new words. In some contexts the negative edge survives, notably in K-pop fandom's distinction between ordinary stans and the stalker-like sasaeng fans.
Research Sources
References used to check this entry’s meaning, history, or documented forms.
Variants
- stan account
- stanned
- stanning
- stans
Usage Examples
- She has been a stan of that band since their first album.
- Critics stanned the director's latest film long before awards season caught up.
- My whole timeline is stanning the new coach after tonight's result.