love-you gesture: medium-light skin tone
Unicode: 1F91F 1F3FC
Description
A hand showing the 'call me' gesture, sometimes also known as 'shaka' or 'hang loose' gesture. The thumb and pinky finger are extended, while the other fingers are curled into the palm. This specific emoji includes a medium-light skin tone modifier.
Group:
People & Body > hand-fingers-partial
Status:
fully-qualified
Emotion:
Typically represents a friendly greeting, 'hang loose,' or 'call me.' It can also convey a relaxed, laid-back, or cool attitude, often associated with surfing or island culture.
Backstory
The 'call me' hand gesture has been around for a long time. The 'shaka' gesture, specifically, is believed to have originated in Hawaii, possibly from the early 20th century, becoming a symbol of the islands' friendly attitude. The emoji was introduced with Unicode 9.0 in 2016.
Usage Examples
- Greeting a friend: 'Hey dude, what's up? 🤙🏽'
- Indicating 'call me': 'I'll text you later, then 🤙🏽'
- Expressing a relaxed or cool vibe: 'Just chilling on the beach 🤙🏽'
- Showing agreement or a positive response: 'Sounds good to me! 🤙🏽'
Cultural Differences
Western culture:
Commonly used for 'call me,' 'hang loose,' or as a general positive and relaxed greeting, especially in surf culture.
Hawaii:
Known as the 'shaka' sign, it is a ubiquitous gesture of friendship, understanding, compassion, and solidarity. Often used as a greeting or farewell.
Brazil:
Similar to Hawaii, the 'shaka' is widely used as a friendly greeting, a signal of 'all good,' or 'hang loose.'