Ilana And Abbi From ‘Broad City’ Have Finally Discovered The Small Town Of Yass NSW
Hopefully they're moving ASAP.
For most people, the term “yass” is probably best associated with Ilana Glazer’s character on Broad City. It’s practically used as a greeting for her best friend Abbi or any other babe she comes across, she says it during sex, she occasionally says it while crying about small children who are dancing and swearing in leather daddy caps.
Many others, however, might know the saying from this 2013 video about Lady Gaga. After a fan filmed himself yelling “yass Gaga” over and over again, the phrase quickly became a meme and spread itself all over the best parts of the internet. It was (and still is) widely used by many in the LGBTIQ and drag communities and has been kicking around since the ’90s with notable roots in AAVE.
But, it’s far fewer people who know the real origin of the term: the small rural town of Yass, NSW. Those of us who’ve ever driven the long boring stretch between Melbourne and Sydney are probably familiar with this blissful little oasis, but the Broad City Instagram account only just discovered it this morning.
A picture, re-posted from someone in Australia with the caption “WHERE DIS”, has them very excited and the fact that the town name is next to a castle (YASS QUEEN) offers undeniable proof this is the true birthplace of the saying.
Yass is a town of around 5,000 people that sits 60km north-west outside of Canberra. It’s on the land of the Ngunnawal and Wiradjuri tribes and was named after “yarrh” meaning “running water” prior to European settlement in 1830. It’s currently known as a quaint little home to old heritage houses, arts and craft stores and the best McDonald’s sign in the world.
Weirdly, neither Yass’s Wikipedia page, tour guides nor social media pages offer any information about how their name inspired one of the most popular and incredibly expressive statements in human existence.
Hopefully this achievement will be better advertised once Abbi and Ilana inevitably move there.
