This article was published on June 29, 2015

Emoji have a 5,000 year history: Listen to this to find out how


Emoji have a 5,000 year history: Listen to this to find out how

The Allusionist is a great podcast about language and its latest episode is a must listen for anyone who loves or loathes emoji.

We write about them a lot here but rarely explore their connection to cuneiform, the writing system developed by the ancient Sumerians, or medieval marginalia.

Have you heard of the Luttrell Psalter, littered with bat and flower ’emoji’?

The episode will only take up 16.54 minutes of your time and there’s an excellent list of further reading here.

The Allusionist

Read next: Emoji are not the future of language, they’re too small to contain our imaginations

Image credit: The Luttrell Psalter: Psalm 103. Lincolnshire, c.1320-40, © The British Library Board

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