1. A member of an ancient Germanic tribe.
2. (obs.) A member of the Gothic subculture; in the late 1970's, the media declared Bauhaus and Siouxsie and the Banshees to have a "gothic" sound, after Gothic literature. Gothic literature was, incidentally, named after Gothic architecture, which was named after the Gothic tribe, as an insult, to imply that it was barbaric.
The original goths from the late 70's had a sardonic sense of humour above all else. They often wore dark clothing, as goth was an offshoot of punk. In the early 80's, Second Wave Goth began with bands like the Sisters of Mercy. This is possibly when goth acquired the reputation of being more sullen. At some unknown date, Goth began degenerating. It was rather like cancer, wherein there was part of the subculture still functioning and alive, but more and more of it was becoming sick and dying. Though some bands with a gothic sound still exist, a new name for the genre is sorely in need of creation. Honestly, those few true goths left need to give up the ghost and come up with a new subculture for themselves.
3. A misnomer for a follower of bands such as Marilyn Manson, Tool, Korn, Slipnot, etc. Generally, bands like these were part of the reason why "goths" kept seeming whinier and whinier. Now not only are there bands trying to portray themselves as goth when goth is effectively dead, but now mass marketing has decided to reshape the subculture to cater to a very lucrative demographic: rebellious teenagers of middle- to upper-class families.
Why is it that there are no more flappers or beats, yet there's a plethora of "hippies," "punks," and "goths"?
The beats and the flappers probably just knew when to give up and move on.
By Nemuko