The World's First Māori emoji app
December 21, 2016 5:01 PM   Subscribe

 
This is fantastic. The quality of the illustration and design work is superb as well.
posted by Dysk at 5:20 PM on December 21, 2016


I think this is totally awesome. I wonder, though, if this, and stuff like it, get proliferated to all kinds of communication applications, how much, if any of their cultural significance would be passed on to users as well?
posted by Metro Gnome at 5:22 PM on December 21, 2016


I can tell you there's a lively Māori Twitter community who are pretty excited about this.
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 6:10 PM on December 21, 2016 [7 favorites]


Metro Gnome, there are still a LOT of Japanese-culturally-specific emoji on iOS, which hasn't seemed to pose a problem on either side.
posted by nicebookrack at 6:15 PM on December 21, 2016 [2 favorites]


Nice - Emotiki.
posted by unliteral at 6:16 PM on December 21, 2016


This question is going to come off as snarky, and it's truly meant as not. Can only the culturally-signified subgroups to whom these images belong use them? Appropriation is a hot button these days, and I could see problems arising.
posted by hippybear at 6:23 PM on December 21, 2016 [1 favorite]


If someone with Emotiki sends an emoji to someone without Emotiki, will the person on the receiving end see these or just get a meaningless string of characters?
posted by rednikki at 6:51 PM on December 21, 2016 [1 favorite]


Generally with apps like this, the person receives the emoji as a sent image, like a photograph or GIF.
posted by nicebookrack at 9:45 PM on December 21, 2016


Can only the culturally-signified subgroups to whom these images belong use them? Appropriation is a hot button these days, and I could see problems arising.

I don't have any answers, but I totally understand the concern and personally I won't be using them, cool add they are, out of a respect for the fact that they almost certainly aren't really for me.
posted by Dysk at 11:13 PM on December 21, 2016 [2 favorites]


The creator has said the emoji is designed for anyone who has an interest in Maori culture.

"Maori, Pakeha, even tourists - we hope anyone who wants to share the Maori language and culture with us will use it, and tell their friends."
posted by Ripper Minnieton at 11:31 AM on December 22, 2016 [3 favorites]


Having not even been on the same hemisphere as New Zealand, I still don't fall into any of those categories, and have had no contact with Maori culture or language, so...
posted by Dysk at 11:48 AM on December 22, 2016


Or it would feel exploitative, exotifying, and shallow, but your mileage may vary.
posted by Dysk at 12:39 PM on December 22, 2016


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