From the creators of Khaleeji emojis

Why did you choose to translate your love for the UAE’s culture onto a digital keyboard? It’s just something that we found was missing in the market; a way to communicate and represent the Middle Eastern voice through social media. It’s a lot of fun and allows the MENA community to finally get involved with our own social media tongue, spreading all the things we grew up with and love, and translating that into digital language. How did you decide to capture life in the UAE? The UAE is such a hub for the — you really do get such a wide range of Arab cultures and communities here. We wanted to highlight that by including cultural references on the keyboard to which the people in the MENA region can relate. We grew up with desert trips, loud families, trips to the souk, shawarmas and Chips Oman — that’s exactly what you find on the keyboard; it’s as nostalgic as it is new and exciting. Do you have any fond memories of the UAE that you’d like to revisit through an emoji? We’d love to do more UAE inspired emojis, like a Ravi’s (restaurant) emoji, for example. It would be fun to revisit memories attached to eateries in Satwa, Karama and Deira, riding quad bikes in the desert, and playing volleyball with friends at Kite Beach. With Halla Walla, the sky is the limit. We’re blessed to have an endless stream of culture in our communities, which we enjoy translating into emojis so that they can be added to our everyday conversations.