Oregon Trail Generation

The Oregon Trail Generation (sometimes referred to as Xennials and Generation Catalano) is a term referring to those born during the Generation X/Millennials cusp years, typically late 1970s to early 1980s. It is named after the video game The Oregon Trail, the Apple II version of which was played by many GenX/Millennial cuspers in their school computer labs.[1]

Terminology

The term Oregon Trail Generation was used by Anna Garvey in her 2015 article The Oregon Trail Generation: Life Before And After Mainstream Tech, published in Social Media Week.[2] Other terms, such as Generation Catalano,[3] Xennials,[4] and The Lucky Ones[5] were already coined and are referenced in her article. Due to Garvey's article receiving broader coverage, including republications in Huffington Post and PopSugar, Oregon Trail Generation is the term most often used. The name is a reference to the Oregon Trail game that individuals born in the late 1970s or early 1980s often played as children in school computer labs.[2]

Slate defines Generation Catalano as being born from 1977 to 1981, essentially Jimmy Carter's presidency. The name is a reference to the character Jordan Catalano from the 1990s teen drama, My So-Called Life.[3]

GOOD magazine describes Xennials as "a micro-generation that serves as a bridge between the disaffection of Gen X and the blithe optimism of Millennials" using the term to describe those born between 1977 to 1983.[6]. The term Xennials received additional attention in June 2017 following an Instagram post[7] describing the term which went viral on facebook.[8] Dan Woodman, an Australian sociologist was credited by the Australian media with inventing the term, but Woodman says he did not coin the term.[6]

Characteristics and traits

Cassie McClure, writing for Las Cruces Sun-News, describes those in the Oregon Trail Generation as "remembering a time before the digital age, but barely."[9] Anna Garvey describes these individuals as having "both a healthy portion of Gen X grunge cynicism, and a dash of the unbridled optimism of Millennials," and discusses their relationship with both analog and digital technology.[2] Sheknows.com describes individuals born in the late 1970s and early 1980s as sharing traits with both Generation X and Millennials.[10]

Anna Garvey describes U.S members of this group as having had an "AOL adolescence" and as being from "the last gasp of a time before sexting, Facebook shaming, and constant communication".[2]

The Dickinson Press describes those born in the early 1980s as having early adulthoods which were impacted by the events of the September 11 attacks and the Iraq War.[11]

Many who identify with Oregon Trail Generation, Xennials or Generation Catalano do so because they don't feel they fit within the typical definitions of Generation X or Millennials.[3][12][13]

References

  1. ↑ Wagner, Tony (8 May 2017). "What did Oregon Trail teach us?". Marketplace. Retrieved 14 May 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Garvey, Anna (21 April 2015). "The Oregon Trail Generation: Life Before And After Mainstream Tech". Social Media Week. Crowdcentric Media, LLC. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 Shafrir, Doree (24 October 2011). "Generation Catalano". Slate. The Slate Group. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  4. ↑ Stankorb, Sarah; Oelbaum, Jed (25 September 2014). "Reasonable People Disagree about the Post-Gen X, Pre-Millennial Generation". Good Magazine. GOOD Worldwide Inc. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  5. ↑ Anna, Garvey (25 May 2016). "The Biggest Difference Between Millennials and My Generation". Huffington Post. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
  6. 1 2 "Are you a xennial? Take the quiz". The Guardian. 26 June 2017. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  7. ↑ Davies, P.H. (23 May 2017). "What is a Xennial?". Instagram. Instagram. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  8. ↑ Vitto, Laura (30 June 2017). "Hey 30-somethings, you're a Xennial". Mashable. Retrieved 5 July 2017.
  9. ↑ McClure, Cassie (20 May 2016). "My So-Called Millennial Life: Old West pioneers of digital age". Las Cruces Sun-News. The USA Today Network. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
  10. ↑ Fogarty, Lisa (7 January 2016). "13 Signs you're stuck between Gen X & millennials". SheKnows. SheKnows Media. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
  11. ↑ Monke, Dustin (31 May 2015). "Monke: A generation stuck in transition". The Dickinson Press. The Dickinson Press and Forum Communications Company. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
  12. ↑ LaFrance, Adrienne (3 February 2016). "How Generations Get Their Names". The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
  13. ↑ Kendzior, Sarah (30 June 2016). "The myth of millennial entitlement was created to hide their parents' mistakes". Quartz. Atlantic Media Company. Retrieved 7 July 2016.
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