By Abubakar Muhammad Hamza
For many young people today, memes have become a second language.Quick, engaging, and instantly understood. They no longer just scroll past funny pictures; they use them to greet friends, debate politics, or even express frustration with life. In our community, this “meme language” is slowly reshaping everyday conversations, leaving older generations amused, confused, or completely left out. But beyond the laughter, what do these digital jokes really say about how Gen Z communicates?
Ask any teenager or young adult today, “What does your meme say?” and they’ll simply respond, “More than a thousand words.” For Gen Z, memes are not just entertainment, they are cultural shortcuts that convey moods, sarcasm, or commentary in ways that plain speech cannot capture.
Husna Kabir, a 19-year-old university student, explained: ” My favorite memes right now are reaction ones, because they perfectly show emotions without needing many words. I use memes almost every day when chatting with friends, since they make conversations more lively. I think memes make talks more fun, but sometimes they confuse people who don’t know the reference.
Yes, I’ve used memes about school stress and exams to express how I feel in a funny way. I do think memes are replacing slang, because people often send a meme instead of saying a phrase”. She added
This reflects a broader global trend. According to a 2022 Pew Research Center survey, more than half of young adults regularly use memes as part of their everyday online communication. The result is that memes have become as important as slang, a shared code that makes conversations faster, funnier, and more relatable.
However, while memes roll off the tongue, or rather the fingertips of Gen Z, they are often foreign to the older folks at home, causing confusion. They often leave parents and older relatives scratching their heads.
Hajiya zainabu Ibrahim,a 48-year-old mother of four, laughed as she admitted: “My son keeps sending me memes. I just laugh, but honestly, I rarely understand them. Sometimes I don’t even know why it’s funny.”
This generational gap is not unique. A study published in the Journal of Communication and Media Studies (2021) found that while digital natives treat memes as natural forms of expression, older generations often feel excluded from conversations because they do not understand the context or symbolism. This shows that memes can both bond peers together and create communication barriers across age groups.
In classrooms, memes have already found a seat. Teachers report that students often use memes to joke about schoolwork, exams, or even lecturers themselves.
Aisha Muhammad a secondary school teacher in Kano, discuss how her students use memes in their daily discussion, and how it reflects their thinking.
She said,“I notice that students sometimes use memes in their conversation to make the class laugh. It can be a distraction but it enhances their communication skills but at the same time made them lazy”.
This blend of humor and serious commentary is not limited to school. During Nigeria’s 2023 elections, memes like “No gree for anybody” went viral, used by youths both as a political statement and as comic relief. According to BBC Africa (2023), memes have become powerful grassroots tools for Nigerian youths to express political frustration, solidarity, and resistance in a language that resonates widely.
But where do these cultural symbols come from? Behind every viral post is a creator who understands how to tap into shared emotions.
Walid Mustapha, who runs a small meme page on Facebook, explained. “I don’t create memes just for laughs. Sometimes, I use them to highlight local issues, like bad roads or fuel scarcity. People relate more when they laugh and share it, instead of reading a long complaint.”
This aligns with what scholars have described as “digital folk art.” A 2022 article in The Conversation argued that memes should be understood as community-driven cultural products, playful yet powerful, reflecting everyday struggles and joys. In many ways, meme creators are the new town criers, spreading messages in formats that stick.
Communication experts say this is more than a passing fad. Memes are transforming the way language itself functions in society.
According to Limor Shifman, author of Memes in Digital Culture (MIT Press, 2014), memes are “units of cultural information” that spread rapidly because they adapt to local contexts. In other words, a meme is not just a joke, it is a symbol that evolves as people remix and re-share it.
Musa Ibrahim, a local social media influencer in Kano, echoed this point: “Memes are cultural shorthand. They simplify complex issues into a single picture or phrase. That makes them powerful, but also risky because they can spread stereotypes or misinformation just as quickly as humor.”
Thus, memes represent both creativity and caution. They bring people together through laughter, but they can also oversimplify or distort serious issues.
From WhatsApp chats to political debates, memes are becoming the emojis of Gen Z instantly recognizable, endlessly adaptable, and deeply tied to local realities. Whether they confuse parents or amuse classmates, one thing is clear, the language of memes is no longer a joke, it is part of how a generation speaks.
And perhaps, years from now, when historians study how we communicated in this era, it may not be long speeches or official documents they turn to, but the simple, humorous, and powerful memes that once made us laugh, argue, and connect.
