# What in Tarnation > What in Tarnation is a 2017 image-macro meme featuring a Shiba Inu in a cowboy hat, spawning rhyming "what in ___-ation" snowclone captions across social media. "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. ## Origin The word "tarnation" dates back to the late 1700s as a cleaned-up version of "damnation," popular in rural and Southern American speech[4]. 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 line[5]. 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 comments[4]. 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 week[4]. 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 days[4]. - **Platform:** Tumblr (original photo), Twitter / Reddit (viral spread) - **Creator:** banjirou (Tumblr user, original cowboy hat Shiba Inu post), TheOneOddGirl (Tumblr user, earlier "wot n ternation" post) - **Date:** 2017 ## 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 profanity[1]. 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. ## 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 days[4]. 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 days[4]. 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 hours[4]. 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 subjects[4]. 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 on[2]. 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 visuals[1]. This audio dimension extended the meme's life on platforms like Vine compilations and later TikTok. ## How to Use 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 settings[4]. But the format is loose enough to work with virtually any context. ## 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 turnover[4]. 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 company[4]. - The meme's biggest single tweet, by @TweetLikeAGirl about sweet tea, hit 30,800 likes in just three days[4]. - The original Tumblr post by banjirou was archived and reblogged over 17,000 times[3]. - Before the Shiba Inu version, the "wot n ternation" format used a distorted human face, not a dog[4]. - Urban Dictionary had an entry for the phrase as early as 2003, over a decade before it became a meme[5]. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is "What in Tarnation"? It's an image macro meme featuring a Shiba Inu dog in a cowboy hat with the caption "what in tarnation," used to express exaggerated confusion in a folksy Southern style[4]. ### Where did "What in Tarnation" come from? The meme version originated on Tumblr in January 2017 when user banjirou posted a photo of a Shiba Inu wearing a cowboy hat[4]. An earlier "wot n ternation" post by TheOneOddGirl in December 2016 laid the groundwork[4]. ### What does "What in Tarnation" mean? The phrase is a euphemism for "what in damnation," historically used in the American South to express surprise or disbelief without swearing[1]. As a meme, it conveys comedic bewilderment[5]. ### How do you use "What in Tarnation"? Photoshop a cowboy hat onto any image and caption it "what in tarnation," or swap "tarnation" for a rhyming "-ation" word that fits the situation[4]. ### Is "What in Tarnation" still popular? The meme peaked in early 2017 and saw heavy use through that year. It still appears occasionally in meme compilations and throwback posts, but its main viral window has passed[4]. ### Who posted the original Shiba Inu cowboy hat photo? Tumblr user banjirou posted it on January 8, 2017, and it gathered over 12,000 notes within eight days[4][3]. ### What was the first "What in Tarnation" meme? The earliest meme version was posted by Tumblr user TheOneOddGirl on December 11, 2016, using a photoshopped distorted face with the caption "wot n ternation"[4]. ### How old is the phrase "tarnation"? The word dates back to the late 1700s as a euphemistic substitute for "damnation" in American English[1]. ### What is the "what in ___-ation" snowclone? It's an offshoot of the meme where users replace "tarnation" with any rhyming "-ation" word to match the image context, like "what in calculation" or "what in procrastination"[2]. ### Why does the meme use a Shiba Inu? The Shiba Inu breed was already internet-famous thanks to Doge. The breed's naturally quizzical facial expression paired well with the confused tone of "what in tarnation"[4]. ## References 1. [What In Tarnation Sound Clip: Origins, Memes, And Viral Fame | SoundCy]() 2. [what in tar nation meme]() 3. [godyatta's reblog of banjirou]() 4. [What in Tarnation - Know Your Meme]() 5. [Memetics]() 6. [What in Tarnation - Urban Dictionary]() 7. [Urban Dictionary: What in tarnation!?]() --- Source: https://meme.com/memes/what-in-tarnation Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library