Are Memes an American/Japanese thing?

[SweetShark]

I just realised all the amount of well-known Memes I saw, are coming from America and Japan mostly.
So for example I see the whole time memes from films/tv shows/cartoons from America like Spiderman,mlp,mad max etc., but not from lucky luke,asterix,etc.
I am wrong to think like that?

 

[SweetShark]

I would say that they're probably more heavily apparent in those cultures, but I've seen enough German, Russian, south American etc memes to know they're not restricted to our two areas.

I am curious of the memes have in Russia.
Germani I guess they have for their comics

 

[madwarper]

I am curious of the memes have in Russia.

According to a cursory google search, Russia banned them[footnote] http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/russian-anti-meme-law [/footnote]. Then, there's the level of censorship in China. And, North Korea just banned sarcasm.

 

[Thaluikhain]

Well, if you are restricting "meme" to "stupid net stuff", then the US has more people wasting time on the net than any English speaking nation.

 

[Pirate Of PC Master race]

Ha ha! You wish!

However, every memes are still based on cultural references. Without cultural background to understand the meme itself, meme can only spread as far as that culture have.

Spoiler: For example, this is very famous meme at the other side of the world...

You probably can't even tell who it is.
(It is portrait of YellOw. His face itself is a symbol to certain culture.)

The meme that spread itself across the continents must be infectious indeed...
I do think that japanese meme gets around due to amount of Japanophiles.

Spoiler: Ah, children of two cultures.

 

[SweetShark]

I am curious of the memes have in Russia.

According to a cursory google search, Russia banned them[footnote] http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/russian-anti-meme-law [/footnote]. Then, there's the level of censorship in China. And, North Korea just banned sarcasm.

....and for that reason they made the ban into a meme?

 

[Bob_McMillan]

They might have more popular memes, but America and Japan most definitely are not the only memers.

 

[DoPo]

You'll have to define what you mean by "memes" because it sounds like you're not talking about the actual concept of a meme but...image macros?

Actual memes seem to raise naturally in every culture, so I highly doubt they would be "restricted" to only some countries.

 

[Sonmi]

I just realised all the amount of well-known Memes I saw, are coming from America and Japan mostly.
So for example I see the whole time memes from films/tv shows/cartoons from America like Spiderman,mlp,mad max etc., but not from lucky luke,asterix,etc.
I am wrong to think like that?

Mad Max is not American, mate.

There are plenty of European memes, South American memes ("una vela" comes to mind), and African memes (Where the hell do you think vuvuzelas came from?). You simply need to widen your horizons and stop assuming everything familiar is American, as you did with Mad Max in your OP.

 

[Vicarious Reality]

Hel naw

The dankness of a countrys memes are most likely linked to its level of it connections

 

[Thaluikhain]

I just realised all the amount of well-known Memes I saw, are coming from America and Japan mostly.
So for example I see the whole time memes from films/tv shows/cartoons from America like Spiderman,mlp,mad max etc., but not from lucky luke,asterix,etc.
I am wrong to think like that?

Mad Max is not American, mate.

There are plenty of European memes, South American memes ("una vela" comes to mind), and African memes (Where the hell do you think vuvuzelas came from?). You simply need to widen your horizons and stop assuming everything familiar is American, as you did with Mad Max in your OP.

You can make an argument that Mad Max is American nowdays, despite its roots.

 

[Sonmi]

I just realised all the amount of well-known Memes I saw, are coming from America and Japan mostly.
So for example I see the whole time memes from films/tv shows/cartoons from America like Spiderman,mlp,mad max etc., but not from lucky luke,asterix,etc.
I am wrong to think like that?

Mad Max is not American, mate.

There are plenty of European memes, South American memes ("una vela" comes to mind), and African memes (Where the hell do you think vuvuzelas came from?). You simply need to widen your horizons and stop assuming everything familiar is American, as you did with Mad Max in your OP.

You can make an argument that Mad Max is American nowdays, despite its roots.

Why exactly?

It's still an Australian IP, with an Australian director/creator, filmed in Australia, with English and South African stars and whose production companies are still mostly Australian.

It's as Australian as prawns on the barbie, mate.

 

[Thaluikhain]

I just realised all the amount of well-known Memes I saw, are coming from America and Japan mostly.
So for example I see the whole time memes from films/tv shows/cartoons from America like Spiderman,mlp,mad max etc., but not from lucky luke,asterix,etc.
I am wrong to think like that?

Mad Max is not American, mate.

There are plenty of European memes, South American memes ("una vela" comes to mind), and African memes (Where the hell do you think vuvuzelas came from?). You simply need to widen your horizons and stop assuming everything familiar is American, as you did with Mad Max in your OP.

You can make an argument that Mad Max is American nowdays, despite its roots.

Why exactly?

It's still an Australian IP, with an Australian director/creator, filmed in Australia, with English and South African stars and whose production companies are still mostly Australian.

It's as Australian as prawns on the barbie, mate.

Ah, I thought it was mostly done by US companies, my mistake.

 

[WolfThomas]

Everyone knows of the dreaded Australian shit-poster.

 

[FalloutJack]

Everyone knows of the dreaded Australian shit-poster.

The Prime Minister or Yahtzee?

I am curious of the memes have in Russia.

I thought all the Russian memes were "In Soviet Russia..." jokes.

OT: Shouldn't Doctor Who, Monty Python, and Top Gear be the main source of memes from England?

 

[WolfThomas]

Everyone knows of the dreaded Australian shit-poster.

The Prime Minister or Yahtzee?

Neither. Just that if you're on something like imgur, reddit, 4chan etc late at night US time, you will encounter Australians (because it's daytime over here) posting inane stuff only they may find funny.

http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/australian-shitposters

 

[MHR]

Memes are just inside jokes that WAY too many people are in on. What country manufactures most of them seems silly. But then memes are silly, so I dunno.