Get out your camera phones to celebrate. Oxford Dictionaries has announced "selfie" is the 2013 word of the year.

The word itself has become quite popular over the last year and was one of Oxford Dictionaries’ “Words on the Radar” series in June of 2012. However, the first written record of the word dates back to 2002 when an Australian man posted on an Internet forum about taking a drunken picture of himself, which he referred to as a selfie. From there, history was made. The word of the year does not need to be brand new, it just needs to have had major prominence within the year. And no one can deny the selfie takeover that has been 2013. According to Oxford Dictionaries’ website, the decision was unanimous.

To honor the year of the selfie, here is a list of the best selfies of 2013.

Michelle Obama

America’s beloved First Lady has joined the selfie craze. Mrs. Obama already proved how hip she is by having her own Instagram account, and this picture just doubles her street cred. Not only did she post a selfie of her and the First Dog, Bo, but it’s combined with a picture of her taking the selfie itself. We can’t decide what’s cuter: Michelle, Michelle’s bangs, Bo, or the selfie.

Michelle Obama selfie (Twitter/@WhiteHouse)

Meryl Streep and Hillary Clinton

Everything about this is golden. Two of the most influential women in one self-taken photograph is almost too much to handle. This picture was taken at the end of 2012, but it still must be added to this list because it is that wonderful. At the Kennedy Center Honors Gala dinner at the State Department in December 2012, the powerhouse duo of Meryl Streep and Hillary Clinton commemorated the combination of their power and beauty by having Streep snap a selfie on her iPhone. The two look like lifelong friends, and this selfie of one of the best actresses of our generation and one of the most powerful female political leaders is absolutely amazing.

Meryl Streep and Hillary Clinton selfie (Twitter/@ryanmer)

Beyoncé

Beyoncé was already the unofficial queen of the world, and now she is the queen of the selfie photobomb as well. During one of her concerts in October, a fan in the audience was taking a selfie from the first row, right next to where Beyoncé was performing. DURING THE MIDDLE OF HER SONG, Jay-Z’s leading lady sneaks up behind this girl and GETS IN THE PICTURE. Just when you think Mrs. Carter couldn’t get any more perfect, she does this. All hail, Queen B.

Beyonce selfie photobomb (Twitter/@touchystyles)

Hillary Clinton

Women in politics are taking over the selfie nation. Hillary Clinton is back! And this time she is with her daughter, Chelsea, attending a Clinton Global Initiative America event in Chicago, and that is where this legendary picture was taken. The former Secretary of State is fairly new to the sphere of social media; she just created a Twitter in June. But obviously she is quickly getting the hang of things and keeping up with modern fads, for both she and her daughter shared this beautiful selfie.

Hillary and Chelsea Clinton selfie (Twitter/@ChelseaClinton)

Pope Francis

Lord, have mercy on our souls with this photograph. This summer, 500 teenagers embarked on a pilgrimage to the Diocese of Piacenza and Bobbio in order to meet with the Pope. Pope Francis had wanted to meet with the group to inspire them to create bright futures for themselves and for the world. Though the theme of the meeting was the future, the Pope and the teenagers commemorated the event in the most modern way possible: with a selfie. God bless this picture.

Pope Francis selfie (Twitter/@Tommy_Dougherty)

Malia and Sasha Obama

The Obama ladies are back! The youngest members of the First Family are proving that they are completely normal people; they take selfies just like every other teenager. During their father’s inaugural parade at the beginning of the year, Malia and Sasha Obama took a quick break from cheering on their father to take a sister selfie. The girls, who seem to have mastered the art of duckfacing and taking selfies, just further prove how cool and contemporary our First Family is.

Malia and Sasha Obama selfie (Twitter/MarkDiStef)

Lance Bass and Joey Fatone

2013 was already the year of the epic *NSYNC reunion at the VMAs, and now it will also be remembered as the year of the *NSYNC selfie. Well ok, only two of the boy banders are in this epic photo, but there is a special guest: the Aflac Duck. During Aflac’s Advertising Week in September, Lance Bass and Joey Fatone joined in on the fun adventure to get the duck’s voice back by taking a selfie with the duck on top of a New York building. Random? Yes. Wonderful? Absolutely.  

Lance Bass and Joey Fatone Aflac selfie (nypost.com)

Astronaut Selfie

A selfie was taken in space. Game over. Aki Hoshide, who is a Japanese astronaut for the International Space Station, changed the whole selfie game by taking a picture of himself while in space. In the reflection of his helmet you can see the Earth and his spaceship, while the sun is behind him. This selfie is truly, and literally, out of this world.

Astronaut selfie (Twitter/@PictureEuphoria)

Geraldo Rivera

This last selfie tribute may be a tad bit disturbing. Fox News contributor Geraldo Rivera posted a selfie to Twitter of himself wearing nothing but a skimpy towel, with the caption "70 is the new 50." This picture became quite infamous quite quickly, and even led to Duquesne University cancelling Rivera's appearace at their school. This selfie may not aesthetically be the best, but it is definitely one of the most memorable ones.

Geraldo Rivera selfie (Twitter/@NewsBreaker)

Some honorary selfie kings/queens include Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber, Kim Kardashian, Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj and Rihanna. These celebrities are frequent selfie posters on all forms of social media. But the aforementioned selfies take the cake for being the best of 2013. So although it may seem like selfies are for Snapchat and teenage girls, when everyone from political leaders to astronauts to Oscar winners are participating, you know that selfie nation has taken over. 2013 will be forever remembered as the year of the selfie.

Reach Staff Reporter Samantha Jacobs here.

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