# Nathan

Nathan is Reddit slang used by white hip-hop fans as a stand-in for the n-word when rapping along to songs. It started with a June 2014 /r/hiphopheads post and later grew into a nickname for rap fans who dismiss mumble rap and champion Eminem, Logic, Hopsin, and NF.

## Overview
Nathan is Reddit slang used by white hip-hop fans as a stand-in for the n-word when rapping along to songs [1]. The joke started on /r/hiphopheads in mid-2014 and spread through /r/hiphopcirclejerk, where users leaned into it by slipping the name into rap lyrics and comment threads [2].

By 2017, the word picked up a second meaning [3]. Rap fans who dismissed mumble rap and loudly preferred lyric-focused artists like Eminem, Logic, Hopsin, and NF started getting labeled Nathans themselves [3]. Urban Dictionary entries riff on the name too, including one gag warning about calling a Nathan 'Nathaniel' without permission [4].

## How It Spread
The gag caught on quickly through /r/hiphopcirclejerk over the summer of 2014, with users like Sputchit and Uncleverest_Username working Nathan into comment threads [2]. It also jumped back to the parent sub /r/hiphopheads within weeks [1].

Over the next few years, Nathan turned up in a wider set of rap-adjacent subreddits, including /r/rapmorelikecrap, /r/tylerthecreator, and /r/eminem [3]. The word had steady use across the Reddit corners that argued about hip-hop.

Starting around 2017, the meaning shifted. Instead of only being a rap-along code word, Nathan became a nickname for the fan who trashed trap and mumble rap while treating Eminem, Logic, Hopsin, and NF as the benchmark for real rap [3]. A post about a Denver concert stretched the term further, counting a '100:1 Nathan to Nigga ratio' at the show to describe an overwhelmingly white rap crowd [2].

## How to Use
In the original setup, people swap Nathan in for the n-word while rapping along to a track, usually as a self-aware bit about being white at a rap show [1]. In the later usage, calling someone a Nathan typically flags them as a fan who takes rap technicality too seriously and dismisses anything that is not classic lyricism, often name-dropping Eminem or NF as their favorite [2].

## Frequently Asked Questions
### What is Nathan?
Nathan is Reddit slang used by white hip-hop fans as a stand-in for the n-word when rapping along to songs [1].

### Where did Nathan come from?
It came from a June 25, 2014 post by Redditor Xnatedawg420X in /r/hiphopheads suggesting the swap as a way to avoid the slur [1].

### What does Nathan mean?
It originally means a substitute for the n-word, and by 2017 it also meant a rap fan who dismisses mumble rap and champions Eminem, Logic, Hopsin, and NF [3].

### How do you use Nathan?
You drop it into rap lyrics in place of the n-word, or call someone a Nathan to mock their fixation on lyrical rap [2].

### Is Nathan still popular?
It held on in hip-hop subreddits like /r/hiphopcirclejerk for years after 2014, though it never really broke out of Reddit rap communities [2].

## References
1. [https://www.reddit.com/r/hiphopheads/](<https://www.reddit.com/r/hiphopheads/>)
2. [https://www.reddit.com/r/hiphopcirclejerk/](<https://www.reddit.com/r/hiphopcirclejerk/>)
3. [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/nathan](<https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/nathan>)
4. [https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Nathan](<https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Nathan>)

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Source: https://meme.com/memes/nathan
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