Smiley Symbols ☺ — Text Face Characters to Copy & Paste
Smiley symbols are Unicode text characters representing smiling faces and expressions. Unlike emoji (which are image-based), these are plain text characters that predate modern emoji — they were the original digital smileys before smartphones and emoji keyboards existed. The most popular smiley symbols include ☺ White Smiling Face, ☻ Black Smiling Face, ツ Katakana Letter Tu, and ヅ Katakana Letter Du.
Classic Smiley Symbols
The ☺ White Smiling Face (U+263A) is the original Unicode smiley — a simple circle with a smile. It was included in Unicode 1.1 (1993), making it one of the oldest emoji-like characters. The ☻ Black Smiling Face (U+263B) is the filled version — bolder and more visible. These symbols predate modern emoji and were used in early internet communication before emoji keyboards existed.
The ツ Katakana Letter Tu (U+30C4) is a Japanese katakana character that, when viewed in certain fonts, resembles a smiling face. It became popular in internet culture as a smiley symbol, particularly in gaming usernames and social media. The ヅ Katakana Letter Du (U+30C5) is a variation with a diacritic mark that adds a slightly different expression.
Smiley Symbols in Social Media
Smiley symbols are popular in usernames and display names where emoji may not be supported. "ツ" in a username adds a friendly, approachable personality. In Discord, gaming, and social media, ☺ and ツ are common decorative elements. The combination "( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)" (the Lenny Face) is a kaomoji-style smiley that has become a meme symbol for suggestive or mischievous implications.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does ツ mean?
ツ is the Japanese katakana character "tsu" that resembles a smiling face in many fonts. In internet culture, it's used as a smiley symbol — a simple, friendly smile. It's popular in gaming usernames, Discord names, and social media bios as a cute, minimalist expression of happiness.
How do I type ☺ on a keyboard?
On Windows, press Alt+1 (numeric keypad) for ☺ White Smiling Face. On Mac, use Ctrl+Cmd+Space and search "smiley." For ツ, you can copy it from this page or use a Japanese input method. The easiest method for any smiley symbol is to copy it directly from this page.
Related Symbol Collections
See also: Kaomoji for (◕‿◕) Japanese text faces, Heart Symbols for ♥ love decoration, Aesthetic Symbols for bio decoration, and Funny Emoji Faces for 😂 humor emojis.