Meaning of WA Emoticons and Its History, Apparently Found Hundreds of Years Ago

Kapanlagi.com - Using emoticons has become a popular habit when sending messages. Unfortunately, among the many people who use them, there are still some who do not understand the meaning of WA emoticons.

Although there are no official rules regarding this, misuse can affect the message's content. The sender and recipient of the message will also experience miscommunication when they do not truly understand the emoticons used.

So, to avoid this, here is information about the meaning of WA emoticons. There is also information about the history of emoticons, which is also interesting to know.

1. Meaning of WA Emoticons

Illustration (Credit: Unsplash)

When sending messages using WhatsApp (WA), users often add emoticons to their text. This addition is considered to make the message more practical when the sender wants to express their feelings. Unfortunately, the meaning of WA emoticons is sometimes difficult for the recipient to understand. Even the sender often makes mistakes in choosing the most appropriate emoticon. Therefore, it is important for you to know the true meaning of emoticons.

Emoticons or emojis, which are pronounced as "eh-moh-ji" in Japanese or "emotikon" in Indonesian, are terms for picture characters used in electronic messages. According to the Indonesian Dictionary, emoticons are illustrations, icons, or groups of characters on a keyboard that show facial expressions, attitudes, or emotions, commonly used in electronic communication, social media, and so on.

Initially, emoticons were only available in Japan. Some of them were very specific to Japanese culture, such as a businessman bowing (apologizing), a face wearing a mask, and a white flower saying "brilliant PR". There are also emoticons that depict popular Japanese foods such as ramen, onigiri, sushi, and Japanese curry. However, the three major operators in Indonesia, NTT DoCoMo, au, and SoftBank Mobile (formerly Vodafone), have established their own emoji variants.

2. The History of Emoticons

Illustration (Credit: Unsplash)

In addition to knowing the meaning of WhatsApp emoticons, it is also interesting to find out their history. Officially, emojis were first created by Shigetaka Kurita in 1999. He was actually a member of the team working on the NTT DoCoMo mobile Internet platform. At that time, 172 12 x 12 pixel emojis were created as a feature of the i-mode messaging service, as well as a feature that differentiated it from other services.

However, the use of facial images in electronic messages had already existed long before that. A computer scientist and instructor at Carnegie Mellon University's Language Technologies Institute introduced the concept of using emoticons in 1969. Yes, he suggested the use of symbols explicitly for messages that were not considered serious. He then suggested adding a smiling face that originated from the colon and parentheses symbols. He explained this during an interview with The New York Times and said,

"I often think there should exist a special typographical sign for a smile - some sort of concave mark, a supine round bracket."

Speaking of colon and parentheses symbols, they were actually found in the transcript of Abraham Lincoln's speech in 1862. However, there is an argument that the use of the emoticon concept is suspected to be a typo. From the various histories above, emoticons themselves continue to evolve into the form that you use now.

3. Examples and Meanings of WhatsApp Emoticons

Illustration (Credit: Unsplash)

After knowing the history of emoticons, now you can enter the explanation of the meaning of WA emoticons which can now be said to be very popular. Moreover, many instant messaging application users in Indonesia. Here is an explanation of several WA emoticon meanings that are often misunderstood.

- Gesture Please

The emoticon allows the image of a customer service or someone who is ready to answer. This emoticon can be used as an expression of asking questions back to the interlocutor.

- Waving One Hand

The emoticon waving one hand has two meanings. Can be used to greet while saying Hi! Can be an effort to express an opinion in a forum.

- Bowing Politely

The bowing emoticon means great respect for the interlocutor. It can also be used as an expression of apology.

- Person Frowning

This emoticon depicts someone who is surprised or dissatisfied. Another meaning given is that someone is uncomfortable with your presence.

- Sulking Person

This emoticon means that someone is sad and stressed. This emoticon can be used to describe bad news.

- Couple with Heart Icon

This emoticon means that someone is very grateful for the relationship. Very suitable for sending to a partner to further convince their feelings.

- Couple Kissing

This emoticon means loving each other between men and women.

- Two Men Kissing

This emoticon is actually the same as loving each other. It's just that loving each other between men and men.

- Family with Child

This emoticon depicts a family with a composition of father, mother, and child. It can describe closeness with family. It can also mean that someone does not want to be disturbed because there is quality time with family.

- Two Men Holding Hands

This emoticon means a very solid team. Some interpret it as friendship. Some even interpret it as gay love.

- Holding Hands between a Woman and a Man

This character emoticon expresses happiness and being together. It means that no matter what happens, as long as we are together, everything will be okay.

Well, KLovers, that's an explanation of the meaning of the WA emoticon along with its history that might be useful for you.

(kpl/gen/ans)