According to an article by Business Insider, the earliest example of e-girls were found on Tumblr, with Vice Media stating the subculture evolved out of the earlier emo and scene cultures. 'E-girl' was first used, in the late-2000s, as an objectifying pejorative against women perceived to be seeking out male attention online. The terms 'e-girl' and 'e-boy' are derived from 'electronic boy' and 'electronic girl', due to their association with the internet.
Rapper Lil Peep is considered influential upon the development of the e-boy subculture in the late 2010s.
