For World Emoji Day, Twitter reveals the most popular emoji around the globe

This Sunday, July 17, marks World Emoji Day, celebrating the graphics that make everyone's texting and tweeting a little more fun. That day was chosen because July 17 is the date that appears on the calendar emoji icon that appears through Apple's mobile operating system.

Sure, it's all a bit arbitrary -- the day was "founded" by Emojipedia founder Jeremy Burge in 2014 -- but it's difficult to deny the influence emoji have had around the world.

To call attention to the occasion, Twitter released some data showing which emoji are used the most in different countries around the world.

For instance, did you know that the most-tweeted emoji in the U.S., Britain and Canada over the past year was not a smiley face but one that looks distinctly unhappy? That negative mood contrasts greatly with Turkey, where (despite its recent troubles) a big smiley face was most tweeted symbol. In Australia and Germany, the thumbs-up sign was number one. South America was partial to musical notes, while France, Italy, Japan and Saudi Arabia all favored variations on the heart.

Twitter also revealed that emoji trends seem to change as the year goes on.

The company released an animated gif highlighting which emoji is the most tweeted, month by month.

Not surprisingly, hearts rule during February for Valentines' Day, and Christmas trees are tops in December. But why is January happier than July?

Something to ponder on this World Emoji Day...