But what are they, technically speaking? And what might we learn by taking a closer look at these images, characters, pictographs… whatever they are 🤔 (Thinking Face). They’ve become the global pop stars of digital communication. Don’t let it discourage you from reading though! That’s why the article always provides textual alternatives. Also, different platforms vary in how they display emoji as well. Depending on your browser, you may not be able to see all emoji featured in this article (especially the Tifinagh characters).