Gnome Meme

Gnome meme may have lost its heyday in the early 2010s, but it’s far from gone. In fact, the tiny gnomes you see on your neighbour’s garden bench are actually a very fascinating and controversial subject. From their origins in folklore to their rise as a popular gardening ornament, there’s a lot more to know about this mysterious little creature.

The first garden gnome was made of terracotta clay in Germany in the 1830s. The gnome became a symbol of German nationalism, and by the end of the 19th century it was a must-have addition to any well-manicured lawn or terrace. The gnome’s popularity spread to the United States and the rest of Europe, and today there are plenty of garden gnomes to be found on sale in stores and online. But while the little trolls are often seen as innocent household decorations, they can also be controversial and even toxic memes.

Whether they are being used as a form of therapy, as an edgy political statement, or as a humorous parody, gnomes have long been a popular Internet phenomenon. Gnome memes have appeared on YouTube, Twitter, Tumblr and other social media sites in many forms. They’ve ranged from the apolitical “You’ve been gnomed” meme to the more politically charged gnome-based protests against capitalism and globalization.

One of the most well known gnome memes was the “Gnome Child” meme, which spawned from a Reddit post in late 2016. The image featured a baby boy dressed as a gnome wearing an outfit inspired by the Halo kill streak announcer’s voice and the tagline “Slayer”. This prompted many users to make their own adaptations of Gnome Child and share them on social media using the hashtag #gnomechild.

Gnomes have also been a popular character in video games and films. In the 2001 French film Amelie, the titular character steals her neighbour’s gnome and sends him postcards from around the world. The gnome was later used as a metaphor for a poorly thought-out business plan in a South Park episode.

Recently, the gnome has re-appeared as an important meme in the TikTok space. In mid-2024, the “Gnomes vs Knights” feud was a prominent trend on the platform. Videos of small gnomes in green malls, like the one created by TikToker @crawly_possessed, were popular as Internet users took sides in an imagined battle between gnomes and knights.

The gnome hunting trend was linked to other extremist trends on the platform, including the schizowave aesthetic and antisemitic messages. Gnomes have been used by some extremists as coded references to their narrative of returning to or embracing tradition, and the trend has also served as a way for these groups to avoid content moderation by using subtle dog whistles. This Insight will explore how gnome hunting and other neo-Nazi motifs can be used as a proxy for violent rhetoric, and how platforms like TikTok should work to mitigate these trends as soon as they emerge.