While Brajana at Mend Pet likes to help broaden our vocabulary with her WoW Word of the Week posts, we like to take a look each month at a little bit of gamer vernacular history. (We do enjoy her posts and if you haven’t checked them out yet, I suggest you do so!)
Considering it is July… hot, fireworks, Midsummer Fire Festival… I figured DIAF would be an appropriate word (well, phrase really) to look at this month. (And yes, yes, I know I skipped June with the hiatus and all.)
DIAF
DIAF stands for Die In A Fire. When we throw insults at others we like it to be something short and quick to type out in case they leave group or logout before we can sputter our anger at them.
Or we're lazy.
Either way, it's easier to shorten words up to acronyms, especially a longer phrase such as “die in a fire.”
Unfortunately, there isn't an interesting and rich history to this piece o' leet speak. Other than finding what the acronym stands for, there isn't much out there.
Die in a fire. Use this word to suggest ways of how a person should be killed. You may also change the letters to suggest other ways. Such as D.I.A.T. (Pronounced Die-at.) “Die in a tornado.”
Source: Urban DictionaryP1- “Wow. That guys an ass.”
P2- “Yeah, he should just go D.I.A.F.”
A commonly used phrase or acronym seen in online games, forums, and message boards.
There are other similar variations such as DIACF (Die In A Car Fire) or more obscure variations like DIACFWLS (Die In A Car Fire With Leather Seats). DIAF is used mostly as a form of friendly jest such as “I hate you!” (Go DIAF) or in the sense of shock or disbelief at news or information, or as general disdain towards it, such as “OMG DIACF PLZ, K? THX”.
Source: NetLingo
According to those two examples, it can used for jest, to express shock, or to be derogatory. But why would we suggest that someone die in a fire? Why fire, in particular?
Because fire is bad.
We talk all the time about people standing in the fire. Get out of the fire. Don't stand in the fire. Fire causes damage.
So, my guess at a bit of history of how this phrase came about would be related to people standing in the fire… and dying. People got upset and frustrated… and it led to them starting to tell those people “Fine, go DIAF!” and promptly kicking them.
And if you are the kind of player that knows better and does NOT stand in the fire… it would be quite insulting if someone else told you to die in a fire. It's like they are equating you with the people that DO stand in the fires!
Or I could be completely off base.
