Even though the ‘Rare Insults’ X page was founded less than two years ago, it already has nearly two million followers who get to enjoy “the most unique insults on the internet”, as reads the page’s description.
And while these unique insults are not all too hurtful, many comments online are. As a matter of fact, nearly a quarter of netizens have reportedly left a malicious comment on the net, with 18 to 34-year-olds being the most keen on arguing in the comment section.
Now used in many shapes and forms, from witty comments online to hilarious punchlines in comedy shows, and beyond, humor developed alongside humans. According to research on its origins, some factors seemed to have a stronger influence on it than others, the former including the origins of language, cognition underlying spiritual feelings, the group size of individuals—or their predecessors—and primate teasing.
The research also suggested that despite animals showing signs that could be somewhat related to humor, only humans seem to fully possess the cognitive mechanisms necessary to engage in it. “The use of rich complex symbols within the framework of a universal syntactical structure, in combination with a high-powered working memory, invariably leads to intricate conceptualizations,” it read in part. “This ability—to quickly manipulate multifaceted symbols in the service of even more intricate conceptualizations—may be an essential distinguishing feature of Homo sapiens.”
Further studies seem to prove that humor is highly intertwined with Homo sapiens’s cognitive mechanisms, as research has found that intelligence is linked to humor production ability. Not only that, such ability in turn is linked to one’s mating success; findings show that males seem to possess a higher average humor ability.
While many people—both male and female—are often considered to be great jokesters, it’s important to remember that what one finds funny is highly subjective. Though there are some things that might be more acceptable to a certain group of individuals, such as people of the same nationality, for instance.
Summarizing the findings of numerous studies on humor, the research publisher Frontiers emphasized that people from different cultural backgrounds may see humor in different ways; despite humor being a universal human activity, important cultural influences can shape the way humor is used and in what situations it is considered appropriate.
Frontiers pointed out that the way humor is perceived in Western and Eastern cultures, for instance, is way different. While westerners have a long-history of appreciating and embracing humor as an expression of amusement or a positive character trait, their Eastern counterparts are seemingly far less fond of it.
In China, for instance, the culture disparages humor and focuses more on restriction and seriousness instead. “Chinese are reluctant to admit they are humorous out of fear of jeopardizing their social status,” Frontiers suggested, adding that people in the country typically don’t consider humor a desirable personality trait.
While people in some countries seem to enjoy humor more than in others, it’s not easy to determine where they appreciate or engage in it the most. But there have been attempts at figuring that out; a poll carried out back in 2011, for instance, suggested that the US is the funniest nation, with Germany at the other end of the spectrum.
The Brits, often considered to have a rather unique sense of humor, were voted "not as funny as they think". However, a later poll regarding how funny countries in Europe were deemed Britain worthy of being on the very top of the list.