What in Tarnation

2017Image macro / exploitable template / snowclonesemi-active

Published March 10, 2026 · Updated March 17, 2026

Also known as: Wot in Tarnation · Wot n Ternation · What in ___-ation

"What in Tarnation" is an image macro meme built around a photo of a Shiba Inu wearing a cowboy hat, captioned with the Southern American expression "what in tarnation." The meme took off in January 2017 on Tumblr and Twitter, quickly spawning a massive wave of photoshopped cowboy hat edits and rhyming "what in ___-ation" snowclone captions across Reddit and social media.

shiba inu memesexploitable templatessnowclone memesphotoshop memesdoge family memes

Overview

The meme centers on a photograph of a Shiba Inu dog wearing a small cowboy hat, paired with the caption "what in tarnation." The phrase itself is an old Southern American euphemism for "what in damnation," used to express shock or confusion without the profanity1. In meme form, it plays on the absurdity of a dog dressed as a cowboy reacting with folksy bewilderment to stereotypically Southern situations.

The format expanded rapidly into an exploitable template where users photoshop cowboy hats onto any subject and swap "tarnation" for a rhyming word that fits the situation. For example, a cowboy hat on a math equation becomes "what in calculation," or on a gym photo, "what in perspiration"4. This snowclone mechanic gave the meme near-infinite flexibility.

Origin & Background

Platform
Tumblr (original photo), Twitter / Reddit (viral spread)
Key People
banjirou, TheOneOddGirl
Date
2017

The word "tarnation" dates back to the late 1700s as a cleaned-up version of "damnation," popular in rural and Southern American speech4. An Urban Dictionary entry from May 13, 2003 by user Ron Jackson defined "what in tarnation?" as a phrase used by Americans south of the Mason-Dixon line5.

The meme's direct precursor appeared on December 11, 2016, when Tumblr user TheOneOddGirl posted a photoshopped image of a man with a distorted face staring at a tablet, captioned "When you find a city slicker on FarmersOnly.com / wot n ternation"4. That post picked up over 59,300 notes on Tumblr within a month. On December 30, Redditor Nirocart64 reposted it to r/dankmemes, where it pulled in 19,600 upvotes and 270 comments4.

Then on January 8, 2017, the defining version dropped. Tumblr user banjirou posted a photo of a Shiba Inu in a cowboy hat with the simple caption "what in tarnation"3. The post collected over 12,000 notes in just over a week4. Two days later, Twitter user @beetaylora reposted the image with the caption "Everyone in Alabama," racking up 16,500 likes and 7,300 retweets within seven days4.

How It Spread

The Shiba Inu cowboy version hit critical mass in mid-January 2017. On January 11, Twitter user @Vincent_Ha1 posted the image with "When your truck isn't the loudest at Sonic," earning 16,200 likes and 7,100 retweets in five days4. The next day, @memeprovider tweeted it in response to people saying "you all" instead of "y'all," picking up 23,000 likes and 10,400 retweets in four days4. Twitter user @TweetLikeAGirl then posted it with "'I'm sorry we don't have sweet tea,'" which blew up to 30,800 likes and 15,000 retweets in 72 hours4.

By February 22, 2017, the meme had mutated into its exploitable form. Dozens of "wot n tarnation" parody macros flooded Reddit's r/dankmemes and r/memeeconomy, featuring cowboy hats photoshopped onto all kinds of subjects4. The snowclone format took hold fast. Instead of just "what in tarnation," users swapped in rhyming words: "what in reincarnation" over a ghost, "what in procrastination" over a student, and so on2. The cowboy hat itself became a visual shorthand, slapped onto everything from cats to politicians to abstract concepts.

The meme spread beyond its original platforms through sound clips and video remixes. The phrase's exaggerated Southern drawl made it a natural fit for comedic audio overlays, where creators paired the sound with absurd or unexpected visuals1. This audio dimension extended the meme's life on platforms like Vine compilations and later TikTok.

Platforms

RedditTwitter4chanTumblrTikTok
View on Google Trends

How to Use This Meme

The "What in Tarnation" format typically works in two ways:

Classic version: Find or take a photo of something looking confused or out of place, photoshop a cowboy hat on top, and caption it "what in tarnation." The humor comes from the contrast between the cowboy aesthetic and the subject matter.

Snowclone version: Pick any situation, add a cowboy hat to the image, and replace "tarnation" with a rhyming "-ation" word that fits the context. Common conventions include: - A confused student: "what in examination" - A gym selfie: "what in perspiration" - A wedding photo: "what in congratulation" - A math problem: "what in calculation"

The setup often involves a scenario tied to Southern U.S. culture, like not having sweet tea, saying "you all" instead of "y'all," or encountering city folk in rural settings4. But the format is loose enough to work with virtually any context.

Create Your Own

Cultural Impact

"What in Tarnation" tapped into the internet's love of Shiba Inu memes, arriving during the same era that gave the breed meme fame through Doge. The cowboy hat photoshop mechanic echoed exploitable formats that were popular on r/dankmemes and r/memeeconomy at the time, where users tracked meme "investments" and rapid template turnover4.

The phrase itself saw renewed interest as a cultural artifact. Language enthusiasts noted its roots in 18th-century euphemism practices, where speakers substituted milder words for blasphemous ones. "Tarnation" for "damnation" followed the same pattern as "darn" for "damn" or "heck" for "hell"1. The meme gave this piece of linguistic history a second life with younger audiences who might never have encountered the expression otherwise.

Fun Facts

The phrase "tarnation" first appeared in English around the 1790s as a way to avoid saying "damnation" in polite company4.

The meme's biggest single tweet, by @TweetLikeAGirl about sweet tea, hit 30,800 likes in just three days4.

The original Tumblr post by banjirou was archived and reblogged over 17,000 times3.

Before the Shiba Inu version, the "wot n ternation" format used a distorted human face, not a dog4.

Urban Dictionary had an entry for the phrase as early as 2003, over a decade before it became a meme5.

Derivatives & Variations

What in [regional]-ation variations

A variation of What in Tarnation

(2017)

Different character versions of the basic format

A variation of What in Tarnation

(2017)

Background modifications and deep-fried versions

A variation of What in Tarnation

(2017)

Combinations with other 2017-era memes

A variation of What in Tarnation

(2017)

Frequently Asked Questions