If you have caught your children or pupils in your classroom randomly shouting “six seven” and throwing their hands up for no obvious reason, you are not alone — and you are certainly not the only one who has typed the words into Google to find out what they mean.
New research shows “67” was the most-searched slang term in South Africa this year, racking up an average of 131,600 searches a month. It beat a long list of other terms that have taken over group chats, TikTok comment sections and school playgrounds, from “cap” and “simp” to “aura farming” and “mogging”.
The words have no real meaning. They come from the song Doot Doot (67) by the rapper Skrilla, which took off online after American basketball player LaMelo Ball, who is six foot seven inches tall, used it in a viral video about his height. Since then, children and teenagers have adopted it as a kind of nonsense chant, often paired with an exaggerated hand gesture, simply because it makes no sense, and that is exactly what makes it funny for them.
The study was carried out by word unscrambling experts at Unscramblerer.com who analysed Google Trends and Ahrefs search data collected between January 1 and August 25 this year for slang terms people had searched for the meaning of, such as “67 meaning” or “what does mog mean”. In total, the researchers tracked more than 150 different search variations.
After “67”, the next most-searched terms were:
- “cap”, “capping” or “no cap”, used to call out a lie or exaggeration or, in the case of “no cap”, to insist something is the honest truth (21,500 searches a month);
- “simp”, used to describe someone who shows excessive devotion to a partner or crush, usually in a relationship where one person does all the giving (20,900 searches);
- “aura”, “aura points” and “aura farming”, which refer to a person’s cool factor or presence, with “aura points” acting almost like a scorecard people gain or lose depending on how cool or cringeworthy their actions are (19,700 searches).; and
- “sigma”, used to describe an independent, self-reliant person who stands apart from the crowd (18,200 searches).
The most searched slang words of 2026 give insight into the cultural conversations happening in South Africa. Using slang is a social signal. What people search for can tell us something about what they are trying to understand and participate in culturally
— Randoh Sallihall, Unscramblerer.com spokesperson
Other popular terms included:
- “mogging” (outclassing someone by looking more attractive or successful);
- “gooning” (becoming overly obsessed with something);
- “rage bait” (content designed purely to make people angry online);
- “glazing” (praising someone excessively and insincerely); and
- “crash out” (losing total emotional control).
Further down the list were everyday favourites such as:
- “bussin” (extremely good or delicious);
- “mandem” (a group of close male friends); and
- “cuh” (a casual way of addressing a close friend, similar to “bro”).
The research also broke the results down by province, and the findings suggest slang trends differ depending on where you live. These are the most-searched terms in each province:
- Gauteng: “mogging”;
- KwaZulu-Natal: “clock it”, used when agreeing with a sharp observation or calling out something;
- Eastern Cape: “simp”;
- Free State: “rage bait”;
- North West: “capping”;
- Limpopo: “larping”, used to describe someone pretending to be something they are not;
- Northern Cape: “67”;
- Mpumalanga and the Western Cape: “aura”.
Unscramblerer.com spokesperson Randoh Sallihall said the findings offered a glimpse into how language was being used by South Africans to connect with others.
“The most searched slang words of 2026 give insight into the cultural conversations happening in South Africa. Using slang is a social signal. What people search for can tell us something about what they are trying to understand and participate in culturally,” said Sallihall.
Slang is more than a collection of jokes that spread online, he said. “Slang may look like a collection of throwaway jokes from the internet, but psychology suggests it is doing something much more interesting. Using slang helps people navigate identity and belong to a community.”
Sallihall said social media had also made it easier for new words and phrases to spread quickly across borders.
“Today new slang terms can spread like wildfire around the world thanks to big online communities on social media such as TikTok, Instagram, gaming chats, streaming and so on.
“The popularity of trending slang words can change quickly, but the psychological need behind them stays the same. People want to understand one another and belong.”
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