Yanny or Laurel
You might remember it as Yanny Laurel audio illusion
The archive has not found a surviving copy.
2018·The platform era
A short recording of one word that about half of listeners hear as “Laurel” and the rest as “Yanny”.
At a glanceThe facts
- Remembered as
- Yanny Laurel audio illusion
- Spread in
- 2018
- Began as
- A sound recording
- Format
- Sound
- Taken from
- A reference pronunciation of the word “laurel” recorded in 2007 for Vocabulary.com
- Performed by
- Jay Aubrey Jones, an opera singer
- Where it started
- Instagram, then Reddit and Twitter
- Origin
- Not an upload originally
- Available
- Not held by ViralWorld
TimelineIn order
- Made
Jones records the word.1
- Posted
A student posts a re-recording of it on Instagram.1
- Took off
It reaches Reddit.1
What people misrememberSet straight
Commonly remembered asNobody knows which word it is.
ActuallyThe word recorded was “laurel”. The viral clip was a recording of that recording played aloud, which exaggerated the high frequencies.1
LegacyWhat it left behind
- Of more than half a million people answering one poll, 53 per cent heard “Laurel”.1
Why it is here: something the internet still knows by name · it got out of its own corner of the internet fast · still being watched and quoted years later
This began as a recording of sound, not as a video. Originally published on non-video.
Where it came fromWhat we know
There is no original upload to identify: this did not begin as one. There is no copy of it here either — what it was, when it appeared and what people called it is what this page can tell you.
Nothing here is claimed to be the first publication of this Moment, because the first publication was not an upload. This began as a recording of sound, not as a video. Originally published on non-video.
Not established. This index only names a creator where the evidence supports it.
SourcesWhat was read
Sources last read on . That date is about the history on this page. Whether the media still plays is checked separately and can change any day. How ViralWorld documents things