Also in the top 10 list, which is based on web traffic to Emojipedia, are the heart, fire, thinking face, the Union Jack, smirking face, winking face and party popper. Overall, it suggests Londoners are a cheeky bunch who enjoy a flirt and a good time. Sounds about right! “People emojis are always most popular and generally speaking the ‘tears of joy’ laughing/crying one is nearly always at the top of the London list, along with face with the hearts as eyes," Burge told the Evening Standard The shrug has also become very popular despite only being approved last year, he said. “Some people spend a lot of time and effort trying to find a clever way of telling a story using different emojis. But we’re using it to chat to our friends. Some things are really hard to say and sending a love heart can sometimes show way more than I could say in a few lines of text." Contrary to the argument that emoji are making us all lazier communicators, Burge believes they're helping us be clearer with our online communications. If you're as fascinated by the cute little symbols as we are, check out his lecture on their history and social impact at TEDxEastEnd at Hackney Empire on 25th February