It's World Emoji Day! Did You Even Know This Was a Thing?

This year marks the seventh annual World Emoji Day, where people all over the world come together to share their love for and promote the use of emojis.

Here’s a bit of history:

World Emoji Day was created by Jeremy Burge (creator of Emojipedia) as an unofficial holiday celebrated on the 17th July.

Why the 17th you may ask? Well, the number 17 is the most common date used on the calendar emoji on iPhone.  In it’s seventh year, World Emoji Day has been celebrated since 2014.

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It's official, #WorldEmojiDay2020 is finally here as the clock has slipped past midnight for those of us living in Australia 🇦🇺 and New Zealand 🇳🇿 🎉🎉🎉⁣ ⁣ This year marks the seventh annual #WorldEmojiDay, where people all around the globe will come together to promote the use of emojis and spread the enjoyment they bring us 🌍🌎🌏⁣ ⁣ It's held on July 17 every year, because that's the date that shows on most vendors when you use the calendar emoji – it basically seemed like the most fitting day to hold it! 🥳⁣ ⁣ We're so excited for our favourite holiday to roll back around – make sure to let us know what you'll be getting up to to celebrate!⁣ ⁣ #emoji #emojiparty #emojieverything #emojieverywhere

A post shared by World Emoji Day (@worldemojiday) on Jul 16, 2020 at 7:47am PDT

This annual event also coincides with the day that Apple announces all upcoming expansions to its emoji packs.

Last year, the emoji creators have released options that include more gender-neutral alternatives, a wider range of skin tones as well as representation of accessibility like mechanical limbs, hearing aids, etc.

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#hypebeasttech: @apple just dropped 60 new emoji designs as part of its iOS 13.2 update. The update focuses on inclusion and diversity with the addition of interracial couples and gender-neutral characters which users will now be able to select multiple skin tones in group characters, such as couples and families. The update also includes disability-themed emoji options, including a seeing-eye dog, characters in wheelchairs and prosthetic limbs. Additionally, there's now an emoji waffle, butter, an otter, a sloth, an ice cube, and a yawning smiley face. Head to our bio link for a closer look at each new emoji.⁠⠀ Photo: Apple

A post shared by HYPEBEAST (@hypebeast) on Oct 29, 2019 at 9:47am PDT

We can’t wait to see what the 2020 emoji updates bring!