Maybe your timeline has been telling you that you “have no choice but to stan” Phoebe Bridgers and Paul Mescal’s budding romance. Or perhaps your most recent viral tweet was met with a fan cam video instructing you to “Stan Ariana Grande for clear skin.” No, this isn’t the latest skincare hack, nor is it a nickname for Stanley, nor is it a requirement that you stan anyone. However, if you want to keep up with internet jargon, you must stan understand what “stan” means.

While many people believe that “stan” is simply a combination of “stalker” and “fan,” any true “Stan” stan will tell you that its origins are a little more nuanced.

What is the origin of the name “Stan”?

It all begins with the rapper Eminem. He has a pretty extensive vocabulary, as evidenced by his world record for using the most unique words of any recording artist (including multiple words that successfully rhyme with “orange”). And that includes some words that the artist has coined himself, such as “stan.”

The rapper released “Stan” as the third single from his Grammy-winning album The Marshall Mathers LP in 2000. The song, which samples Dido’s “Thank You” in its chorus, is a sort of reverse-fan-fiction, with Eminem weaving a twisted narrative about an imagined fan named Stan who murders his pregnant girlfriend and then himself after Eminem refuses to answer his letters. In terms of Stan’s name, it’s never been confirmed that Eminem intended for “Stan” to split into “stalker” and “fan.”

“In his 2008 autobiography, The Way I Am, Eminem shared scans of the two notebook pages he wrote the song on,” writes Thomas Hills, one of the top contributors to Genius’ analysis of “Stan” lyrics.

Shawn Setaro, a Complex reporter who also contributed to the “Stan” Genius analysis, speculates that the name was chosen because it rhymes with “fan.” However, Setaro points out that in hip-hop and rap, things are frequently retroactively assigned meaning — consider Wu-Tang Clan’s “backronym” of “Witty Unpredictable Talent And Natural Game.” Setaro notes that the after-the-fact meaning of “Stan” was decided “not by the artist, but rather by listeners.” That’s correct. Stans may have determined some of the meaning of stan for stans.

Setaro attributes the term’s evolution from Eminem’s eerie lyrical narrative to pop culture jargon to fellow rapper Nas.

So, is it a bad thing to be a “Stan”?

In typical Internet-age fashion, the term “stan” has undergone so many iterations and usages that it no longer connotes an abusive, letter-writing stalker. So that’s a plus. However, depending on who you’re talking to, “stan” can have a variety of different connotations.

“While the original meaning based on Eminem’s song and the way the name coincidentally works as a combination of’stalker’ and’fan’ is extremely harsh,” says Arianna Jeret, deputy editor at Your Tango, who also wrote a deep dive into the usage of “stan.”

What Is Stan Culture/Stan Twitter?

Many stans have found like-minded communities online, particularly on Twitter, as die-hard fans of various celebrities have come to self-identify as stans. Some stans have gone so far as to dedicate an entire page to their favorite stars as a fan account. Stan communities can band together to promote their favorite artists’ content, share content related to the artist, and bond over common interests.

“Having a sense of belonging and community is fundamental to our humanity,” Hills says of stan communities. “Therefore, logically speaking, fandom provides a wonderful opportunity for us to find these things.”

However, as implied by the distinction between “fan” and “stan,” there is a level of heightened devotion that makes stan culture a bit more extreme.

“‘Stan’ communities can often become echo chambers of fanatical fans who, due to groupthink, are unable to leverage objectivity,” Hills explains. “Contrary voices can become buried in spam and abuse, and it can disempower its own members because they are afraid of being vilified by their own.”

Similarly, Setaro mentions cases where a fanbase “comes together to attack someone for sharing criticism — or sometimes just unpleasant facts — about their celebrity of choice.”

Why am I only hearing about “Stan” now, if it was created in 2000?

The main reason appears to be that stan has been hidden away within specific fandoms, such as K-Pop circles, for years and is only now coming to light. As social media platforms continue to cross-pollinate, niche slang words like these are exploding.

“Eminem’s ‘Stan’ was released in 2000, and everything 2000s has been slowly building to trend over the last few years,” Jeret observes. The term combines nostalgia for Gen X/Millennials with novelty for their Gen Z children.” Consider the recent resurgence of wired earbuds or 2014 Tumblr aesthetics.

How Should “Stan” Be Used?

As the term “stan” grew in popularity, it was used for a variety of purposes and effects, such as describing unique aspects of fandom or ironically.