Before ringing in the new year, it’s always fascinating to look back at the trends that shaped the culture of the previous twelve months. A lot of these trends have to do with lifestyle or social media and grew rapidly in a short period of time.

Harambe 

Harambe, the gorilla who was shot at the Cincinnati Zoo after a three year old boy jumped in his enclosure, was turned into an infamous punch line across Twitter, Tumblr, and Facebook. Harambe was also used as a widely known meme on many social media sites.

“During the month of July, my Instagram feed was clogged with posts about Harambe, and that’s how I knew that it would become a internet sensation,” said Griffin Mitchell, junior.

Pokémon Go

Pokémon Go will be remembered as a change in the virtual world, allowing anyone from any location in the world to step outside and catch Pokémon.

“I would always open the Pokémon Go app whenever I went somewhere. I think I had a small obsession with the game,” said Mackensie Cruickshank, junior.

“Finsta”

Finsta’s (the shortened word for fake Instagram) have been a popular trend in which people make a second account in order to upload funny posts that they wouldn’t post otherwise. It has become so common, specifically throughout the younger generation, that almost anyone you know either has or follows one of these accounts.

“Fake instagrams bring the best humor,” said Mikayla Acovelli, sophomore.

Clowns 

Back in October, near Halloween, people would dress up as clowns and walk around to scare people. Many were even arrested for taking the “joke” too far. There is no actual evidence as to why this happened, but it will be known as one of the biggest scares in the year of 2016.

Mannequin challenge 

The mannequin challenge has been the most recent trend blowing up social media. Companies, schools, athletic teams, and Devils’ Advocate took part in the viral video idea, remaining still in action like mannequins. Most of the videos have been played along with the song “Black Beatles” by Rae Sremmurd.