What is the Mandela Effect?

What if I told you the Monopoly Man never had a monocle? Or Fruit loops were always spelled “Froot loops?” If you thought otherwise, you’re not the first! The Mandela effect is the illusion of remembering something that was never real. Many people might remember a Hyphen between “Kit” and “Kat,” though it never existed. This phenomenon was named after Nelson Mandela, who died in 2013. Many people recall his death in prison during the 1980’s. 

There have been so many cases of the Mandela effect, between the iconic Darth Vader line not being what we think it is, or “Mirror Mirror on the wall” being a complete ruse! Hundreds of people across the whole world have accepted some things as it is, only to find out their memories are fake. While there isn’t a solid explanation for this mystery, most scientists believe that it’s connected to Collective Memory. Collective Memory is when one or more people contribute to your memories, such as if a person told you a fun fact that you can remember. So many people agree on one thing that it affects the way your brain works.

There are hundreds of daily things people could’ve sworn were real. The Mandela effect doesn’t discriminate, and it affects almost the whole world. Certainly an interesting phenomenon, being able to create and develop completely fake memories on your own. It’s usually small changes, but shocking ones at that. In “We Are The Champions,” you may recall the song finishing with the words “of the world.” In that case, you’re mistaken. Queen never put these words into the song, albeit one concert having those words at the end. The Ford logo we have all come to know and love has a swirl at the edge of the F, despite many people thinking of it as a straight line. All these little details of things we know as everyday sense can surprise you! 

Try looking up some examples of the Mandela effect, and see how many you got right! It’s fascinating how many people it affects, and all the tiny differences we miss in day to day life. Have fun seeing how many times you were tricked by this phenomenon!