It has been 26 years since the first emoji was created, and the emoji continues to connect people around the world, as one observer noted on X (formerly known as Twitter).
Emojipedia, a resource dedicated to the meanings, history, and designs of emojis, established World Emoji Day on July 17 because it marks the date of the announcement of iCal for Mac at the MacWorld Expo in 2002.
World Emoji Day was created by Jeremy Burge, according to Emojipedia. They handle over 45 million emoji lookups each month and keep the public informed about the latest additions to the emoji world.
The hashtag #WorldEmojiDay generates over 4 billion impressions on Twitter (now known as X) each year.
Emojipedia’s awards celebrate the evolving landscape of emojis, with categories based on both emoji usage and popular vote.
Voting and usage data have been used to determine winners across various categories, including Most Popular New Emoji and Most Anticipated New Emoji at the World Emoji Awards.
In 2019, the most popular new emoji was the smiling face with three hearts. The winners in 2020 included a white heart and a yawning face.
According to Twitter (now known as X) usage data from July 2021, the ten most popular new emojis included a magic wand, a smiling face with tears, a mending heart, and a heart on fire. The 2022 World Emoji Lifetime Achievement Award honored one of the most enduring emojis: the red heart.
Sign of the times? After several rounds of voting, voters selected the Face with Bags Under Eyes as the one emoji that they feel best sums up the year so far. World Emoji Awards voting has declared the #Most2025Emoji winner as a Face With Bags Under Eyes!
Did you know @Emojipedia's annual celebration of all things emoji is now in its twelfth year?
Here's a quick rundown of what's been happening as part of this year's #WorldEmojiDay celebrations! 🥳📆https://t.co/b5iGuMKhSi
— World Emoji Day 📅 (@WorldEmojiDay) July 17, 2025
🏆 Your #Most2025Emoji winner is Face With Bags Under Eyes!
Thanks for voting with us! 👏 pic.twitter.com/gQewYM0gUO
— World Emoji Awards 🗳🌍🏆 (@EmojiAwards) July 17, 2025
It's Keith x Keith in this @Emojipedia conversation about the history of emoji.
"Emoji have become the digital equivalent of punctuation. They’re not just visual flair—they’re essential grammar. " 🔥🔥🔥https://t.co/H34PJKz37H
— World Emoji Day 📅 (@WorldEmojiDay) July 17, 2025
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