<P> In 2013 , the dance became a viral sensation beyond black culture . Miley Cyrus used the dance in a video that was uploaded first to Facebook and then YouTube in March . Though twerking began trending as a web search in November 2011 , and despite its origins in the bounce culture of New Orleans in the late 1980s , the word twerk would be added to the Oxford Dictionary Online and attributed to Cyrus following her appearance at the MTV VMA Awards in August 2013 . It became the number one `` What is '' Google search that year as those outside the culture questioned the popularity of the booty - popping dance that showed up across social media feeds worldwide . The word was a runner - up to `` selfie '' in the Oxford Dictionaries Word of the Year 2013 . </P>
<P> In 2013 , the dance became a viral sensation beyond black culture . Miley Cyrus used the dance in a video that was uploaded first to Facebook and then YouTube in March . Though twerking began trending as a web search in November 2011 , and despite its origins in the bounce culture of New Orleans in the late 1980s , the word twerk would be added to the Oxford Dictionary Online and attributed to Cyrus following her appearance at the MTV VMA Awards in August 2013 . It became the number one `` What is '' Google search that year as those outside the culture questioned the popularity of the booty - popping dance that showed up across social media feeds worldwide . The word was a runner - up to `` selfie '' in the Oxford Dictionaries Word of the Year 2013 . </P>
who made twerking a global phenomenon in august
who made twerking a global phenomenon in august
Miley Cyrus
Miley Cyrus