Conversation so far:
How was Dawkins responsible for the term meme?
In his book, The Selfish Gene, Dawkins coined the word meme.
What was Dawkins referring to?
Dawkins's meme refers to any cultural entity that an observer might consider a replicator of a certain idea or set of ideas.
What is the selfish gene?
CANNOTANSWER.
Are there any other interesting aspects about this article?
Although Dawkins invented the term meme, he has not claimed that the idea was entirely novel.
Why didn't he claim that it was a novel idea?
For instance, John Laurent has suggested that the term may have derived from the work of the little-known German biologist Richard Semon.

Question: Did Semon actually use the word meme?
Self-contained rewrite: Did Richard Semon actually use the word meme?