Unicode Emoji 6.0 initial drafts / Draft Candidate chart updated

Emoji 6.0 is starting development, and initial drafts of the specification and data files are available. In the specification and data, a new property is added that helps to “future-proof” segmentation for emoji. The specification also contains more proposed guidelines: for gender-neutral emoji, the application of skin-tone modifiers, and others.

There are two types of emoji: characters and sequences. While these appear and behave similarly for users, they are released on different time schedules.

• Emoji characters at Draft Candidate status are targeted at Unicode 11.0 (due in June 2018). These characters are “short-listed”. The Emoji Candidates chart has been updated with these characters, and feedback is solicited on names, keywords, and ordering. They will be reviewed at the October UTC meeting and are on track for Final Candidate status.
• Emoji sequences may be released as a part of Emoji 6.0. The exact content and release schedule of Emoji 6.0 has yet to be determined: it could appear earlier than Unicode 11.0. The Proposals for new sequences for Emoji 6.0 were presented in L2/17-287 and will be reviewed in the October UTC meeting. Other proposals may be considered at that meeting.

Over 100,000 characters are available for adoption, to help the Unicode Consortium’s work on digitally disadvantaged languages.

Unicode Candidate Emoji

The Unicode Consortium has accepted 5 new emoji characters as candidates for Unicode 10.0, scheduled for release in mid-2017. These 5 new emoji candidates are listed on the Emoji Candidates page, together with the 74 candidates for Unicode 9.0. These join thousands of non-emoji candidate characters for Unicode 10.0.

Candidate characters for Unicode are not yet finalized—so some may be removed from the candidate list, and others may be added. Names, images, and code points may also change, so these candidates are not yet ready for use in production systems. Other prospective emoji characters are still being assessed and could be approved as candidates in the future.

Proposals for new emoji characters can be submitted at Submitting Emoji Character Proposals, which also explains the selection factors used to assess new emoji proposals, the process, and the timeline.

Show your support of Unicode, and adopt a character!

Unicode 9.0 Candidate Emoji

The Unicode Consortium has accepted 38 emoji characters as candidates for Unicode 9.0, scheduled for release in mid-2016. At this point, these emoji are candidates—not yet finalized—so some may be removed from the candidate list, and others may be added. Names, images, and code points may also change, so these candidates are not yet ready for use in production systems.

These emoji have been accepted as candidates for Unicode 9.0 for a variety of reasons. They may be needed for compatibility with emoji characters in existing systems. For example, the FACE WITH COWBOY HAT was accepted for compatibility with the emoji used in Yahoo Messenger. Some are chosen based on expected high frequency of use or because they are highly popular requests from online communities. Others fill gaps in the existing set of Unicode emoji, as by completing a gender pair.

Many other prospective emoji characters are still being assessed and could be approved in the future. For more information about selection criteria, see Selection Factors in UTR #51, Unicode Emoji.

The images shown below are draft black and white versions for the Unicode 9.0 charts. Once the emoji candidates have been finalized, vendors that support emoji will provide colorful and better-designed displays for each of these. For example, the emoji for shrug might appear as shown on the right.

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Some of these new emoji would take the new emoji modifiers as discussed in Diversity. Some emoji may also get annotations to help guide design and usage. For example, the cucumber emoji could also be used to represent a pickle.

Candidates

Code	Image	Candidate Unicode Name
1F920		FACE WITH COWBOY HAT
1F921		CLOWN FACE
1F922		NAUSEATED FACE
1F923		ROLLING ON THE FLOOR LAUGHING
1F924		DROOLING FACE
1F925		LYING FACE
1F919		CALL ME HAND
1F933		SELFIE
1F91A		RAISED BACK OF HAND
1F91B		LEFT-FACING FIST
1F91C		RIGHT-FACING FIST
1F91D		HANDSHAKE
1F91E		HAND WITH FIRST AND INDEX FINGER CROSSED
1F930		PREGNANT WOMAN
1F926		FACE PALM
1F937		SHRUG
1F57A		MAN DANCING
1F934		PRINCE
1F935		MAN IN TUXEDO
1F936		MOTHER CHRISTMAS
1F940		WILTED FLOWER
1F6F4		SCOOTER
1F6F5		MOTOR SCOOTER
1F6D1		OCTAGONAL SIGN
1F942		CLINKING GLASSES
1F5A4		BLACK HEART
1F950		CROISSANT
1F951		AVOCADO
1F952		CUCUMBER
1F953		BACON
1F954		POTATO
1F955		CARROT
1F98A		FOX FACE
1F985		EAGLE
1F986		DUCK
1F987		BAT
1F988		SHARK
1F989		OWL