About
Duck Face is the term used to describe the facial expression made by pressing one’s lips together and outward, resulting in a duck-bill like appearance. It is usually accompanied with raised eyebrows, and often with copious amounts of mascara. As described by antiduckface.com:
you know that face you make when you’re about to take that perfect picture of yourself for the internet?
you know, the pose where you push your mouth out in that sort of pout / kiss face to make it look like you’ve got big pouty lips, a super-defined jawline, and model-quality cheekbones?
it’s called “duckface”
Origin
The origin of the Duck Face may have been Derek Zoolander, as his trademark look, Magnum, has a similar appearance. The pose seems to have risen in popularity with the rise of the social networking site MySpace.
Collections and information here.
Meaning
In March of 2010, Redditor Theditor attempted to describe what he believed was it’s meaning and purpose.
“It’s kind of a mock sexy, from what I understand. A lot of females today feel so insecure about themselves, that the look is kinda a joke in itself. It’s a way to try saying “Hey I’m so secure that I make this silly face and can laugh about it with my friends, but its only because I’m really insecure and hope that this can hopefully get you attracted to me via false confidence.”
I could be wrong tho."
His suggestions were later corroborated by several redditors claiming to be female.
Google trends: Duck face & OMG cat
Google Insights: Duck face & OMG Cat
Interestingly, Wikipedia also has mentioned the “duck face”, but in an article named Gurn. While “gurning” might be another act entirely, it is worth mentioning that being a good “gurner” could earn you some ducets in the UK.
