現代のイギリスの進化生物学者がギリシャ語から作った造語。ギリシャ語のmimeisthai(擬態)、語源はmime(擬態)と同じ。遺伝子に部分的に影響されて綴られた、生物の擬態的な伝達行動を指すのに使われる。
We need a name for the new replicator, a noun that conveys the idea of a unit of cultural transmission, or a unit of imitation. 'Mimeme' comes from a suitable Greek root, but I want a monosyllable that sounds a bit like 'gene'. I hope my classicist friends will forgive me if I abbreviate mimeme to meme. If it is any consolation, it could alternatively be thought of as being related to 'memory', or to the French word même. It should be pronounced to rhyme with 'cream'. [Richard Dawkins, "The Selfish Gene," 1976]