When was the first meme used

The concept of a meme can be traced back to the 1976 book "The Selfish Gene" by Richard Dawkins, in which he coined the term to describe how cultural ideas and behaviors are passed on and evolve. However, the first internet meme is often credited to the emoticon ":-)", which was used on a computer science message board in 1982. The first viral meme is believed to be the dancing baby animation, which gained popularity in 1996. The exact date of when the first meme was used is difficult to determine, as the internet has played a crucial role in the spread and evolution of memes.