Heart Eyes, Party Poppers: Apple Celebrates World Emoji Day - Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Independence Day isn't the only holiday in July worth celebrating.

Back in 2014, Apple Inc. AAPL designated July 17 as World Emoji Day after Apple users noticed that the calendar emoji displays this date.

The celebration often involves the release of new and improved emoji packages, and Apple users have had heart eyes and high fives ever since.

Emoji History

The original emoji was developed in 1999 by Japanese developer Shigetaka Kurita. Apple first gained access to the global use of emojis in 2011 with the release of iOS 5.0.

Since then, Apple has transformed the use of emojis from merely sending images to an autonomous method of communication and global phenomenon.

By The Numbers

Apple has 2,666 emoji in its overall repertoire.

According to WorldEmojiDay.com, over 900 million emojis are used daily without text on Facebook, Inc. FB's Messenger. By 2015, half of the comments left on Instagram included at least one emoji. New Year’s Eve takes the emoji cake for the most sent on a single day on social media platforms.

The two most-used emojis on iOS right now are “Face With Tears Of Joy” and the classic heart. This year’s Emoji of the Year will be announced Tuesday afternoon in a special event.

What’s Next

On Monday, Apple announced the release of more than 70 emojis in an update for all devices. These updates include an enhanced personalization of the person emojis, allowing users more realistic options for hair color, hair texture and the absence of hair altogether.

Other additions include a softball, lobster, kangaroo and cupcake. These, as well as many other characters, will launch with the release of iOS 12.

Price Action

Apple shares were trading down 0.11 percent at $190.69 at the time of publication Tuesday.