Spam originally referred to a canned meat product sold by the Hormel Foods Corporation. Since then, many other uses of the term have emerged.
- Spam (Monty Python), a Monty Python comedy sketch. The "Spam" in the sketch refers specifically to the meat. Most later uses of "spam" refer in one way or another to undesirable repetition, and this sketch is considered to be the most likely source of such uses of the term.
Uses referring to repetition
- Spam (electronic), unsolicited or undesired bulk electronic messages. There are many types of electronic spam, including
- E-mail spam, unsolicited e-mail
- Mobile phone spam, unsolicited text messages
- Forum spam, posting advertisements or useless posts on a forum
- Spamdexing, manipulating a search engine to create the illusion of popularity for webpages
- Spam in blogs, posting random comments or promoting commercial services to blogs, wikis, guestbooks
- Newsgroup spam, advertisements and forgery on newsgroups
- Messaging spam ("SPIM"), use of instant messenger services for advertisement or even extortion
- Spam (computer game), to repeatedly use one weapon or tactic. This term is based on the technological meaning of "undesired bulk electronic message"
- Flyposting ("street spam"), illegal blanket advertising in public places
Uses in songs
At least two songs named "Spam" have been released, neither of which has any connection to either the Monty Python sketch nor to the electronic uses of the term that came afterwards. Both are about the original meat product.
- Spam (song), a song by "Weird Al" Yankovic. It is a parody of Stand by R.E.M.
- "Spam" was a song on the album It Means Everything by the ska band Save Ferris
