The reality of this little thing ----> #
We all use it. It started here, on Tumblr. Except one thing has always bothered me. The word "hashtag" grates on me. I found myself groaning every time I heard someone say it (even myself, shamefully). Not wanting to be a hypocrite, I've been referring to it for some time now as the "tumblrtag", for lack of a better word. Today I stumbled over a realization a few of my friends would hit themselves for. Its not "hashtag". Its HATCH-tag. For those of us who didn't pay attention in third grade art class (or have simply forgotten) (#) that represents the same basic form as the shading technique of cross-hatching. What evidence do I have to back up this claim? What was Tumblr created for? Before fandoms overran the site, it was intended To give artists a place to broadcast their works and talents, as an alternative to sites like deviantart. Any art student can tell you about hatching. It only seems fit that the target audience have a universal symbol, and this obscure little icon (#) did just fine. As fandoms began their parasitic takeover (no offense, that's why I'm here too), the word got skewed like a game of telephone. The word "hashtag" was spawned and the misnomer spread like wildfire.
And there you have it. Mystery solved (and I feel much better)!
