Eli5: How did the term “Goth” go from Germanic tribes destroying Rome, to the music and fashion we know today?

Question

Eli5: How did the term “Goth” go from Germanic tribes destroying Rome, to the music and fashion we know today?

In: 7280

Answer 1

The term goth started as a barbarian tribe. Later we had barbaric architecture, barbaric art and barbaric literature. The goth subculture had barbaric/tribal music compared to other music at the time.

One origin story is about Andi Sexgang who was nicknamed the Gothic Goblin of Visigoth Towers (where he lived) and his fans were therefore called goths. The media used it too and the name stuck. For a short while goth was called positive punk but it didn’t stick.

Tldr – something something barbaric compared to mainstream ideals in ancient tribes, architecture, art, literature and a modern music genre plus its fans.