English

edit

Etymology

edit
 
A Canon FAX-L240 fax machine. Faxlore is spread through such devices.

From fax +‎ lore.

Pronunciation

edit

Noun

edit

faxlore (uncountable)

  1. A kind of folklore comprising humorous material and urban legends that are shared by fax machine.
    • 1996, Gail de Vos, “Science, Technology, and the Contemporary Legend”, in Tales, Rumors, and Gossip: Exploring Contemporary Folk Literature in Grades 7–12, Westport, Conn.: Libraries Unlimited, Greenwood Publishing Group, →ISBN, part III, page 120:
      Both Xeroxlore and faxlore have an increasing emphasis of visual material: / [It may be] a characteristic of both the increasingly visual sophistication of youth in our society and the capacities of the fax machine which sends images rather than alphanumeric messages; []
    • 2010, Jamie Frater, “Food and Drink”, in Lauren Harrison, editor, Listverse.com’s Ultimate Book of Bizarre Lists: Fascinating Facts and Shocking Trivia on Movies, Music, Crime, Celebrities, History and More, Berkeley, Calif.: Ulysses Press, →ISBN, pages 147–148:
      The origins of the [cabbage soup] diet are unknown, bu it gained popularity by word of "faxlore" in the 1980s because it spread virally through people sharing it via fax machines.
    • 2016, “Xeroxlore”, in Christopher R. Fee, Jeffrey B. Webb, editors, American Myths, Legends, and Tall Tales: An Encyclopedia of American Folklore, volumes III (Q–Z), Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, →ISBN, page 1073:
      Xeroxlore, photocopylore, faxlore, folklore by facsimile, office graffiti, or formerly typescript broadsides refer to materials circulated through fax machines, Xerox machines, or other photocopiers—usually within a workspace.
    • 2015, [Robert Durham], “Modern Folklore”, in Modern Folklore, [s.l.]: [CreateSpace Independent Publishing], →ISBN, page 128:
      Faxlore is a sort of folklore: humorous texts, folk poetry, folk art, and urban legends that are circulated, not by word of mouth, but by fax machine. [] Some faxlore is relatively harmless. Cartoons and jokes often circulate as faxlore; the poor graphic quality becoming worse with each new person who resends the joke to the next recipient.

Coordinate terms

edit

Further reading

edit