Bubble teas, black cats and pinched fingers: new emojis for 2020

The Unicode Consortium has announced that 117 new symbols have made the final cut in a range being released later this year

A look at the new emojis coming to phones in September 2020. Courtesy Emojipedia

A smiley face with a tear, nesting dolls, and a black cat are some of the new emojis coming in 2020. The Unicode Consortium has announced that 117 new designs have made the final cut and they also include people hugging, a cup with bubble tea, a ninja and bottle-feeding parents.

While no official date has been announced, in a blog post the company write: “The new emojis typically start showing up on mobile phones in September/October — some platforms may release them earlier.”

Other notable additions include a worm, a cockroach, a toothbrush, some flatbread, and the Italian gesture of pinched fingers (with different skin-tone options). There are also more gender inclusive images, following last year’s batch that focused on inclusivity.

Back in February 2019, the Unicode Consortium unveiled 230 new emojis with a majority representing people with disabilities and their needs. They included hearing aids, prosthetic limbs and service dogs. It also included the option for interracial couples to mix and match skin tones.

Click below to see a preview of all 117 emojis coming in 2020:

The first emojis debuted in October 2010 after Unicode Consortium released 722 different designs, and the genre has come a long way since.

In 2015, Oxford Dictionaries’ Word of the Year was an emoji – the Face With Tears of Joy one.

There's also a World Emoji Day celebrated annually on July 17.