självself

Självself is a neologism used in some Swedish-language and international discussions to describe a reflexive form of selfhood. The term combines the Swedish word själv ("self") with the English word self, highlighting a loop of self-reference in which a person confronts or presents multiple layers of their own identity. It is not a term with an established definition in major dictionaries and its precise meaning varies by context.

In philosophy and psychology, självself may refer to reflexivity, the process by which a mind becomes aware of its own mental states. In digital culture and media theory, it can denote the coexistence of an inner self and an externalized self—such as an avatar or curated online persona—through which the subject studies, manages, or experiments with self-presentation.

Because självself is a relatively recent and niche coinage, references are scattered across blogs, speculative essays, and contemporary art criticism. There is no standard taxonomy; some authors treat it as akin to metacognition or to reflexive identity, while others use it to discuss how social platforms encourage observing and calibrating one’s own image.

See also: self-awareness, reflexivity, identity, avatar, metacognition. As usage evolves, självself may gain more precise definitions or fade from use.