Blink 182 fans convinced they've discovered rude meaning behind band's name

Blink 182 have been one of the world's biggest bands for almost three decades - but it seems some fans are only just realising the true meaning behind their name

Despite boasting two chart-topping albums on the Billboard 200, many fans remain clueless about the origin of Blink 182's distinctive name.

The American rock band, best known for its line-up featuring bassist and vocalist Mark Hoppus, guitarist and vocalist Tom DeLonge, and drummer Travis Barker, has a global fanbase.

Their hit songs include All the Small Things, What's My Age Again?, Adam's Song, The Rock Show, Always, Dammit, First Date, and Stay Together for the Kids. However, despite their presence in the music scene since August 1992, some fans are only now pondering the meaning behind the number sequence 182.

One Reddit user simply asked: "What does 182 mean? " According to Dying Scene, the band was initially named Duck Tape, but Tom decided on a change. He proposed the name Blink when the band comprised himself, Mark, and their friend Scott Raynor.

Due to an Irish electronica artist already operating under that name, they had to tweak it to avoid confusion. A statement explains: "they added '182' to the end. Why 182, specifically? According to the band, it is how many times Al Pacino says 'f***' in the movie Scarface. Of course."

At the time of their name change, Blink's debut album Cheshire Cat had just been released, prompting them to update their cover art. If your copy of this record doesn't have '182' on the band's name, it could be worth a tidy sum.

However, as the band constantly joke about the origins of their name, many fans no longer know what to believe. A Reddit user chimed in on the topic, saying: "Did they not confirm that 182 was Mark's ideal weight? I may have misremembered that entirely. But I thought that was the whole joke."

Another added: "They should have changed it to Blink Was Taken." A third fan recounted: "One of my favourite stories is at a show them saying, you know why we're 182, cause Blink 181 was taken." Yet another joined the conversation: "I thought a 182 was some police code for going nude in public or similar."

Someone else contributed: "I'm from San Diego and there was a story I once heard that 182 is the alphabet numbers. 18th letter is R and 2nd is B which is abbreviation for Rancho Bernardo where they started the band. Not sure if there's any truth to that because I thought it was Poway where they started it, but it was a story floating around back in the day."

The final user offered a different take: "I read on the internet when I was really young that blink was a combination of blue and ink. The number came from a few digits in a number that was on a 'lost parrot' sign on a telephone pole." It's safe to say that it remains a bit of a mystery!