Where does “顔文字” come from?

顔文字 (Japanese) comes from Japanese 文字, from Middle Chinese 文字.

顔文字 (Japanese): an emoticon

Definitions

  1. an emoticon

Ancestry of “顔文字”, step by step

顔文字 traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via Japanese 文字

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese文字a letter, a character; script, writing system; a...
2Middle Chinese文字—

via Japanese 顔

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Japanese顔a person's face; a person's reputation

Words derived from “顔文字”

Every word from Middle Chinese 文字 →Every word from Japanese 文字 →