About

Masbro (Eng. "dude") is a nickname for capybaras that grew popular in memes in early 2023. Most of the "Masbro" memes are image macros and are used as reaction images. It is employed similarly to "bruh."

Origin

On July 26th, 2022, Instagram^[1] user @cjzuero uploaded screenshots of a Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas mod showing the Carl Johnson seeing a capybara in the street. The post received more than 5,900 likes in seven months (shown below, left). Prior to January 19th, 2023, an unknown user uploaded a poor-resolution version of @cjzuero's screenshot and added text reading "aduh masbro" (Eng. "ouch, dude"). On January 19th, 2023, Facebook^[2] user Dio Cinta Marinette II reposted the image to "Dokumen Asli Upgrade 8TB: Not for Sale" group (shown below, right).

Precursor

The name "masbro" itself had been used for Big Floppa memes before its usage became popular with capybaras. Around October 2022, an unknown user uploadeda photo of caracal hissing with text written "jangan lucu lah mas bro" (Eng. don't try to be funny, dude) (shown below).

Spread

Starting in January 2023, Capybaras grew popular in Southeast Asian internet circles under the name "masbro." For example, on January 31st, 2023, Facebook^[3] user Jullnevercryy uploaded a compilation of Capybara photos combined with Indonesian sentences that end with "masbro" to the "EMU Shitpost" group. The post received 342 reactions and 615 shares in one week (shown below, left). On February 1st, 2023, Facebook^[4] page "Rakyat +62" uploaded a similar compilation that received more than 3,900 reactions and 714 shares in one week (shown below, right).

On February 2nd, 2023, Facebook^[5] user Seito Kai uploaded a clip from the Yuru Camp anime series that shows capybaras, matching them with masbro memes. The video received more than 2,100 reactions and 1,400 shares in five days (shown below, left). On January 31st, 2023, Indonesian content creator YaBegitulah used Facebook^[6] to upload an edit comparing Big Floppa with Capybaras, competing for the title of the real "masbro." The video received more than 12,000 reactions and 1,900 shares in one week (shown below, right).

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References