In the US, 81% of women say they have been harassed online (Statista, 2020). With women’s behaviour still routinely policed online and off, teen girls and women are responding with #girlhood, an online trend valorising a bygone (in some countries, sadly non-existent) uninhibited time in life before societal strictures take hold. This halcyon vision of the carefree, fearless girl has unfurled as a viral expression of how women of all ages behave in their moments away from the male gaze. 

The girl-coded internet kicked off in summer 2023, chiefly on TikTok, with women and girls flocking to the platform as a space to celebrate girl-centric attitudes and aesthetics. Nostalgic montages inspired by the Barbie movie were followed by mega-viral micro trends #girldinner and #girlmath, as well as evolving discourse on the trend’s impact.  

#Girlhood has also impacted the internet’s ‘core’ corner – the proliferating menu of aesthetic trends like royalcore and cottagecore. The new wave of girl ‘cores’ create female affinity by recentring femininity as a smorgasbord of influences and lifestyles, including a ‘blokette’-core update on 90s ladettes, the hyper-femininity of ‘coquette’-core, and the aspirational romanticism of Tomato Girls.

Inspired by online homages to #girlhood, teen girls and twentysomethings are seizing opportunities outside of social media to bring girlhood values into their community interactions, cultural discovery and entertainment experiences. This includes revelling in the shared wisdom of teen advice blog Girlhood.org, learning about the history of girlhood in art, and triumphantly communing over girl-tastic pop music. 

New gaming and film releases are also arriving in time to ride the wave of reclaimed girlhood, bestowing primed audiences with the chance to revel in the commingled challenges and joys of young womanhood. Key titles include South-Asian diasporic girlhood game Thirsty Suitors, coming-of-age surrealist movie Poor Things, and rewritten pop-culture legend Priscilla.