call me hand: light skin tone
Unicode: 1F919 1F3FB
Description
A hand with thumbs and pinky fingers extended, forming the 'I love you' sign in American Sign Language (ASL), with a light skin tone.
Group:
People & Body > hand-fingers-partial
Status:
fully-qualified
Emotion:
Represents love, affection, support, or friendship. Often used in casual contexts to convey warm feelings without being overly romantic.
Backstory
The 'I love you' hand gesture itself is a combination of the ASL letters I, L, and Y (index finger and thumb form an 'L', pinky finger forms an 'I', and the thumb and pinky combined form a 'Y'). This emoji, along with other skin tone modifiers, was introduced to expand inclusivity and specificity for digital communication, allowing users to accurately represent their skin tone.
Usage Examples
- Expressing affection: 'Love you, mom! 🤟🏽'
- Showing support: 'Thinking of you! 🤟🏽'
- Greeting friends: 'Hey guys! 🤟🏽'
- Positive affirmation: 'That's awesome! 🤟🏽'
Cultural Differences
Western culture:
Widely recognized as the 'I love you' sign, particularly in American Sign Language (ASL). Also used informally to mean 'rock on' or 'hang loose' in some subcultures.
Global usage:
Although originating from ASL, its use has spread globally as a simple way to express love or positive affirmation in digital communication. However, its exact meaning can sometimes be misinterpreted in cultures less familiar with ASL.