Michiel Adam's Ownd

We swallow the content of posts with our eyes, so it's no surprise that "smilies" have settled on the Internet forever. Smilies on FB,Discord Emojis,iPhone, WhatsApp, and Instagram are increasingly replacing sentences, and without them, communication would be much more difficult. Expressing your opinion with "smilies" has become so popular that in the latest versions of MacbookPro, the list of smilies is one of the elements displayed on the touch screen. Panel. Let's check what each emoji means and how to use emojis to avoid mistakes.

What does each emoji mean, and how do you use emoticons?

The history of emojis is long. The first emoticon was emailed on September 19, 1982, at 11:44 am so that it would be 40 years old in 2 years. It looked like this: :-) The message's author was a professor at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Scott Fahlman. The Japanese term "emoji" consists of a combination of the words e ("image") and moji ("sign," "letter"). Feelings and emotions are conveyed through emoticons.

While emojis for objects don't require comments, expressing emotions with emojis can be tricky. Let's start with the basic emotions:

- joy, laughter, good mood;

- sadness, disappointment, longing, dissatisfaction, confusion, despair;

- blinking, winking, flirting, ridiculing someone;

- shock, surprise, fear;

- envy, jealousy, anger, rage;

- such professions as a policeman, detective, cook, worker, teacher, technician, artist, scientist, firefighter, and others;

- and also marriages, single parents, partnerships - all in a different configuration;)

- by the way, clicking on the human smiley opens the choice of skin color or race.

When to use emojis and when not?

Meanings of emoticons in other countries

It turns out that when using emoticons and gestures abroad or when talking to foreigners, we need to be extremely careful if we do not want to be misinterpreted.

Portugal, Italy, and southern Europe: beware of the "goat."

- avoid the "horns" gesture. The index finger and little finger are simultaneously raised (straightened). Wrongly considered a motion of Satanists. In Southern Europe, it means "cuckold," but at the same time, in Buddhist societies and Hinduism, it is used to ward off evil and negative emotions. Use at your own risk, because in many countries of southern Europe, it means the message "I sleep with your wife" ( Do you know the phrase "set the horns"?)

- in the Middle East and Southern Europe (e.g., Sardinia, Italy), a thumbs up indicates an obscene, offensive gesture. Folded fingers in Italy mean "how was it?", "What are you talking about?" or "what do you want?" in the Democratic Republic of the Congo means a small amount of something. In Turkey, it is used to emphasize something excellent or good. In Egypt, "I will be there in a moment." By the way, gestures in Italian culture are a separate topic. There is even a dedicated WikiNapoli website explicitly dedicated to Italian gestures.

Asia: Let's keep our mouths shut and avoid the victory gesture😝

Showing your tongue at someone in Europe is considered a sign of disrespect. Children often display their tongue when making fun of their friends. In Asia, it is forbidden to show the language even to children. Maori (an indigenous ethnic group in New Zealand) - such a gesture means that we respect someone very much.

The victory gesture ("victoria"), whose ignorant patron was Sir Winston Churchill, directed outwardly towards the recipient, is considered offensive on the premises of the former British Party.

- for an invitation with the index finger, we can get in trouble in Asia, and in the Philippines, we can be left without a finger (plus we risk being arrested).

Greece and Former Byzantium: Don't Raise Your Hands

- a raised hand with spread fingers in most countries means "wait." In Greece, it means "to eat feces." The gesture of the raised hand has a long tradition in the Byzantine Empire. It punished the criminal by smearing his face with dirt, ashes, and manure. Thus, by showing the "raised hand" gesture in this area, we are symbolically spreading someone's face, that is, insulting.

Brazil: Avoid Vegeta Gestures and Emoticons

- Vegeta (circle of thumb and forefinger) - in Brazil, this gesture is interpreted as a combination of the middle finger and the signal "I think you are gay."

- an innocent OK can indicate the homosexuality of another person or a "go" gesture. In Asia and Brazil, the "OK" gesture means a three-letter word and is considered obscene. In Latin America, West Africa, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, and some other parts of the world, it means "get out of here."

Anglo-Saxon countries

- Crossing fingers in Australia, the USA, and Canada means that we wish someone good luck, but in Vietnam, it is considered an obscene gesture (female genitals). By showing your little finger in the UK or USA, you let someone know that he has a small reproductive organ. I think that's why we won't find this gesture in the list of emoticons.

China: don't wave if you don't want to say goodbye forever.

- the "waving hand" emoticon reminds us of a simple greeting or goodbye. In China, this will be perceived as the end of the friendship under very unpleasant circumstances.

Pakistan: words are safer than gestures

As in other Asian countries, gestures are advised to be avoided as they may have different associations than in Russia.

- if in our culture this gesture means "good luck" (or "the enemy will not pass"), then in Pakistan, it means "get lost." Therefore, it is better not to tempt fate and say: Allah ka Fazal ho! ("Good luck").

Quebec and the Arab world: 'biceps' emoji have different connotations

- even an innocent bicep, which (at least in Russia) will be associated with strength or success in any field, has an entirely different meaning abroad. While for a French-speaking Canadian, the bicep emoji means a bicep implant, Arabs take it as a hint of underarm odor.