For the past few years, whenever people want to talk about how old something is, invariably they seem to say something about how it must date back to 1993.  Why this particular 90s year? 

Not 1990, not 1992, not 1995, 1996, or '97 (OK on occasion 1991), but most often it is 1993.  So why is this?  Why not 1992?  Or why not 1995?  That's 10 years, now 11 years ago?  That's pretty old isn't it?  1990, 1991, and 1992 are both even older.   

I've noticed this trend for a few years now, starting probably back in 2000, which is already amazingly 6 years ago, and '93 was 7 years ago at that point.  But why 1993 as opposed to the other 1990s years?

I guess I'm partially wondering about this since I actually graduated high school in 1993, so it's like damn that was a long time ago considering how people like that as their favorite old school reference.  But it's been something that has really made me curious for some years now. On a recent episode of Stacked, Pamela Anderson exclaimed that someone's closet looked "like a time portal to 1993!" and I was like, my god there it goes again with 1993.  Invariably if someone wants to make reference to how old school something is, they invoke 1993. 

This was a memorable year for me.  I turned two years old.  ;D

I think people say 1993 because it was kinda the core of the "Early Nineties", that is the part of the Nineties prior to 1997 and generally before the Internet and Spice Girls.  People still kinda act like the Backstreet Boys and Furbys and such are brand new even though they're really somewhat dated.

1989-'92 is kinda transitional; I'd say 1989 and 1990 are still more 80ish but 1991 and 1992 are quite '90s.  But 1993 is when things became 100% '90s, and '93 was probably the peak of early '90s culture.  Even by 1994 "The Nineties" were starting to become like the 2000s.

Off topic, but: It's 2006 now.  There are now teenagers born in 1993!  Well into the '90s, some of them probably have little in common with '80s-born kids!

The '90s ARE old:

1990 is 16 years ago (halfway between 1974 and now)
1995 is 11 years ago (halfway between 1984 and now)
1999 is 7 years ago (nearly as close to 1990 as now)


Age of '90s teens: 19-36 (average 27.5)
Age of '90s kids: 6-28 (average 17)


10 years ago is 1996!

I'm 16 born in 1989 and the 90's seem old to me.

For the past few years, whenever people want to talk about how old something is, invariably they seem to say something about how it must date back to 1993.  Why this particular 90s year? 

Not 1990, not 1992, not 1995, 1996, or '97 (OK on occasion 1991), but most often it is 1993.  So why is this?  Why not 1992?  Or why not 1995?  That's 10 years, now 11 years ago?  That's pretty old isn't it?  1990, 1991, and 1992 are both even older.   

I've noticed this trend for a few years now, starting probably back in 2000, which is already amazingly 6 years ago, and '93 was 7 years ago at that point.  But why 1993 as opposed to the other 1990s years?

I guess I'm partially wondering about this since I actually graduated high school in 1993, so it's like damn that was a long time ago considering how people like that as their favorite old school reference.  But it's been something that has really made me curious for some years now. On a recent episode of Stacked, Pamela Anderson exclaimed that someone's closet looked "like a time portal to 1993!" and I was like, my god there it goes again with 1993.  Invariably if someone wants to make reference to how old school something is, they invoke 1993. 


Good point. I think I've noticed this too, now that you mention it.

I'm guessing because it was the height of the grunge era in every sense. It seemed really fresh at the time. I was 11 and 12 that year, so even though I obviously wasn't living on my own like the Melrose Place crowd, I had a very good feel for everything at the time. That was the first time I noticed a definite change from the stuff I knew in my early childhood.

The 80's might've had a couple remaining fumes in pop culture, but it was 99.9% gone in terms of coolness.

As for why it's not 1992 or 1994 getting mentioned in the same league, I think (again because of the "grunge/coffeehouse/Beavis & Butthead/sitcom" culture), '93 was a truly "definable" year that kinda set the standard for pop culture that followed.

The only definable year we've really had since then has been 1999 (before that, I'd say 1982 and 1987 were also).

I know what you mean...

I honestly can't believe how long ago some things happened...I'm only 21, and I can't belive that it was 10 yars ago now that the Apice Girls emerged. 10 YEARS AGO!!! Seems like yesterday that Iwas in my first year of secondary school talking about how cool they were, and who was the cutest Backstreet Boy and all that rubbish! It's honestly seems amazing to me that it wasthat long ago.

I think 1993, and 1994 are perhaps the years I hear refernced to the most. I dunno, did a lot of things happen in these years that distinguished the early 90s from say, 1995? Perhaps so... I think as time was getting on, mmusic was starting to change, fashion trends of the late 80s were beginning to disappear and then you started to get smack back into the digital age - home PCs were the norm, and then you have the Internet, mobile phones, becoming more apparent...

People older than me always talk about the 80's (20 year area). I unfortunately never comment. But wait until the 2010's when the 90's will be 20 years old. I'll be able to talk about something more than 10 years. ;D

Funny, I've always heard of people saying stuff that is old is "so 1999". Maybe that's just around here. And I'm old enough to remember when 1999 seemed so far in the future it wasn't worth worrying about.  :\'(

Funny, I've always heard of people saying stuff that is old is "so 1999". Maybe that's just around here. And I'm old enough to remember when 1999 seemed so far in the future it wasn't worth worrying about.  :\'(


Tell them the clothes they're wearing and the music they listen to are 1999-ish, then they'll shut up.

I don't think it has anything with the year 1993, it has
everything to do with the number 3.Ask twenty people
to pick a year in any decade and over half of them will pick
the year with the 3, i.e.- '93,'83,'23 etc.. 3 seems to be the
magic number.All things divine and scientific are variables of 3.
Also,ask a person to guess a number between 1 and 50 and
it will probably be 37 and very few people will pick a number out
of the 30's.

I don't think it has anything with the year 1993, it has
everything to do with the number 3.Ask twenty people
to pick a year in any decade and over half of them will pick
the year with the 3, i.e.- '93,'83,'23 etc.. 3 seems to be the
magic number.All things divine and scientific are variables of 3.
Also,ask a person to guess a number between 1 and 50 and
it will probably be 37 and very few people will pick a number out
of the 30's.


I'd guess they'd pick 5.

I remember back in 8th grade(2000-2001)this girl said she liked her shoes and this one guy was like. When do you get those? '93?! It was funny.