Skoden / Stoodis

Submission 20,332

Part of a series on Internet Slang. [View Related Entries]

About

Skoden and Stoodis are two Native American slang terms that mean "let’s go then" and "let's do this" and are often said before a fight. "Skoden" was coined in 2016 by a Facebook user named Mark Brave Rock who posted a picture of his friend Pernell Bad Arm with two fists up in a fighter's stance. "Skoden" was written in Impact font below his frame in an image macro meme. Thereafter, the meme became both controversial and praised in Native American meme circles. In 2022, the slang terms trended once more in the FX show Reservation Dogs created by Taika Waititi. Also Twitch streamer Soup made Stoodis and Skoden memes notable in November 2022 when playing Cards Against Humanity.

Origin

Sometime in 2016, Facebook user Mark Brave Rock (since deleted) posted a picture of his deceased friend Pernell Bad Arm with his two fists up in a fighter's stance accompanied by the caption "Skoden" written in Impact font (shown below). Brave Rock deleted his profile later in life after the meme went viral according to the Canadian news publication CBC^[2] in an article written about the "Skoden" meme in July 2018.

Spread

In 2016, Skoden memes started to spread on Facebook using Bad Arm's likeness. For instance, on April 18th, 2016, the Facebook^[3] page They too Rezzy for You posted a Skoden meme that showed "his son," gaining over 240 reactions in six years (shown below, left). On April 19th, 2016, the Facebook^[4] page Drezus Music shared a meme that informed people Bad Arm had passed away in 2015, gaining roughly 10,000 reactions in six years (shown below, right).

"Skoden" and "Stoodis" in Reservation Dogs

"Skoden" and "Stoodis" resurfaced in pop culture in mid-2021 following the release of FX's TV show Reservation Dogs created by Taika Waititi.^[5] On July 9th, 2021, the official Twitter^[6] account of the TV show tweeted a promo video, showing the characters spray-painting "SKODEN" on a brick wall. Over the course of 16 months, the tweet received roughly 49,000 views and 840 likes (shown below).

From creators @TaikaWaititi and Sterlin Harjo, Reservation Dogs premieres August 9 exclusively on #FXonHulu. Tag along. #ReservationDogs pic.twitter.com/V0oFf01lG7

— Reservation Dogs (@RezDogsFX) July 9, 2021

On August 9th, 2021, Reservation Dogs officially released for streaming.^[6] Multiple times in the show, the characters said "skoden," "stoodis," skoin' it" and "skoing." For instance, a clip from season one, episode eight was uploaded to YouTube on September 29th, 2021, in which the characters used multiple forms of the phrase (shown below).

As the show's fanbase grew, the use of "skoden" appeared more prevalent on Twitter. Much early usage was from Native American users who expressed humor through the lens of a white person saying "skoden." For instance, on August 24th, 2022, Twitter^[7] user kalengoodluck tweeted, "Am I gonna laugh or cry the first time I hear a white person say 'skoden,'" gaining over 700 likes in three months (shown below, left). On September 16th, 2022, Twitter^[8] user Cordi_FD tweeted, "I love that Rez Dogs is trending and getting the hype it deserves but if I hear a yt person say 'skoden' imma scream," gaining roughly 1,200 likes in two months (shown below, right).

Twitch Streamer Soup on "Stoodis" and "Skoden" Memes

On November 4th, 2022, Twitch streamer Soup was playing the online version of Cards Against Humanity on livestream as multiple "Stoodis" and "Skoden" memes were appearing. On November 8th, Soup uploaded an edited version of the stream to YouTube (shown below).

Following the November 4th livestream, Soup and his fellow Twitch streamers started tweeting,^[9]^[10] "SKODEN STOODIS," and earning between 2,000 to 4,000 likes each.