# Studying Cultural Differences in Emoji Usage across the East and the West

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/1904.02671 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/1904.02671/

## Key facts

- Cited by 8 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 4 Apr 2019.

## Built on by (most cited first, 8 of 8)

- [NL-Augmenter: A Framework for Task-Sensitive Natural Language Augmentation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2112.02721/) (2021)
- [Irony in Emojis: A Comparative Study of Human and LLM Interpretation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2501.11241/) (2025)
- [Social Media Reveals Urban-Rural Differences in Stress across China](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2110.15726/) (2021)
- [Language-based Valence and Arousal Expressions between the United States and China: a Cross-Cultural Examination](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2401.05254/) (2024)
- [How to Do Things without Words: Modeling Semantic Drift of Emoji](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2110.04093/) (2021)
- [Historical patterns of rice farming explain modern-day language use in China and Japan more than modernization and urbanization](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2308.15352/) (2023)
- [Cross-Cultural Transfer of Emoji Semantics and Sentiment in Financial Social Media](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2605.09414/) (2026)
- [FinMoji: A Framework for Emoji-driven Sentiment Analysis in Financial Social Media](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2605.09469/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Global acceptance of Emojis suggests a cross-cultural, normative use of Emojis. Meanwhile, nuances in Emoji use across cultures may also exist due to linguistic differences in expressing emotions and diversity in conceptualizing topics. Indeed, literature in cross-cultural psychology has found both normative and culture-specific ways in which emotions are expressed. In this paper, using social media, we compare the Emoji usage based on frequency, context, and topic associations across countries in the East (China and Japan) and the West (United States, United Kingdom, and Canada). Across the East and the West, our study examines a) similarities and differences on the usage of different categories of Emojis such as People, Food & Drink, Travel & Places etc., b) potential mapping of Emoji use differences with previously identified cultural differences in users' expression about diverse concepts such as death, money emotions and family, and c) relative correspondence of validated psycho-linguistic categories with Ekman's emotions. The analysis of Emoji use in the East and the West reveals recognizable normative and culture specific patterns. This research reveals the ways in which Emojis can be used for cross-cultural communication.