What Exactly Is An 'E-Girl?' The Internet Aesthetic And Slang Term Explained

An email is a letter, but you get it on the computer, and an e-girl is a woman, but you meet her on the computer. Every generation has its own look, and for Gen Z that look comes from a long internet tradition: a specific aesthetic that has become simultaneously admired and infamous on TikTok and other platforms.

What is an E-Girl?

An e-girl is somebody who dresses and puts on make-up according to a specific style, associated with TikTok influencers and online personalities. Loud and attention-grabbing make-up combines with nerdy and slightly goth clothing to forge a whole new kind of vibe. Often, e-girls (and their brothers-in-posting, the e-boys) are pale from being inside all day and interested in very niche and online cultural expressions.

Where Did E-Girls Come From?

The exact origin is unknown. The term first came into usage in the early 2010s, but the phenomenon has arguably been around much longer. Towards 2019, on TikTok, the e-boy and e-girl both got more fleshed out.

What Is An E-Boy?

An e-boy is the male version of an e-girl. Often giving off a similar vibe, e-boys also share some of the same tell-tale signs as e-girls: dyed hair, eyeliner, and funky clothing choices.

How Do You Identify an E-Girl?

An e-girl may wear dark eyeliner, with designs painted beyond the edges of the eyes. She may also wear, it seems, black and white clothing, and have dyed or otherwise unconventional hair. Jewelry is also an important part of the e-girl aesthetic.

However, what seems to tie the look together is a sense of irony: the e-girl (and the e-boy) dress more to be noticeable than to look good. The garments favored by e-girls and e-boys tend to be secondhand or call back, in a kind of retro way, to 1990s and 2000s goth or punk fashion with a modern twist. Anime aesthetics and cat ears also play an important role.

Most of all, what defines an e-girl is her constant onlineness. But girls are also a valuable part of the world, serving in a variety of crucial roles, including serving in the military.

Who Are Some Famous E-Girls?

Possibly the most famous e-girl is the controversial Belle Delphine, who has gotten in hot water for purportedly selling tainted and potentially hazardous used bathwater that allegedly led to fans getting sick. Other e-girls include Waifu Mia, whose playful videos have earned her a devoted following.

Another famous e-girl is Emma Langevin, whose split black-and-white hair and thick New Jersey accent add new layers to the online archetype.

How Do You Become an E-Girl?

In a series of 2019 TikToks, braver meme-makers exposed the e-girl factory, where people are seized by a mysterious force and subjected to an intricate make-over and wardrobe change.

But what really makes you an e-girl is a commitment to posting and to dressing like people you meet on the computer, not like people you meet in real life.

Why Do E-Girls Exist?

In a sense, being an e-girl is less a way of dressing yourself than it is an orientation towards existence. An e-girl (or an e-boy) is somebody whose primary social life is online. They dress to be seen and judged not by the people they encounter out in the world, but for the eyes on the other side of their phone or computer camera. E-girl style marks a person’s belonging in the subculture of the terminally online.

For the full history of the e-girl, be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.