Noun

(en noun)

A graven image or representation of anything that is revered, or believed to convey spiritual power.

*

, title=(The Celebrity), chapter=2 , passage=Sunning himself on the board steps, I saw for the first time Mr. Farquhar Fenelon Cooke. He was dressed out in broad gaiters and bright tweeds, like an English tourist, and his face might have belonged to Dagon, idol of the Philistines.}}

* 1911 (The Green Eye of the Little Yellow God) , :

There's a one-eyed yellow idol to the north of Kathmandu, There's a little marble cross below the town; There's a broken-hearted woman tends the grave of Mad Carew, And the Yellow God forever gazes down.

A cultural icon, or especially popular person.

Noun

(en noun)

An extremely loyal and obsessed fan, particularly one whose fixation with a celebrity is unhealthy or intrusive.

* 2011 , Vanessa Spates, " Whether in Britney's Army or Rihanna's Navy, stans need to surrender to sanity", The Lantern (Ohio State University), Volume 132, Number 16, 11 October 2011, page 9A:

I know the in-depth detailed life of a stan because I am one. I'm one of those Lady Gaga fans,

* 2013 , " Selena Gomez: She Is My Queen", Sunday Tribune (South Africa), 17 March 2013:

I am the biggest stan for Selena because she is my queen. She made Disney interesting and I have always watched her.

* 2013 , Jake Folsom, " Stans take dedication to extreme heights online, in real life", Washington Square News , Volume 41, Number 104, 5 December 2013, page 11:

Incidents have occurred with stans showing up to pop stars' residences, as has happened with Madonna, Taylor Swift and others.