PICTOGRAPHIC LANGUAGE: CHARACTERISTICS, TYPES AND USES - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2025

The pictographic language is one that enables communication through pictograms. Pictograms are images that convey an idea through the representation of concepts, objects, situations or actions of reality.

This type of language is used in situations in which verbal language cannot be used or is not sufficient. For example, it is a widely used tool for children's stories and games aimed at ages when children cannot yet read.

The origin of pictographic language dates back to the Neolithic period, when humans drew pictograms on stones with the aim of communicating ideas.

These types of expressions are considered, even today, as the first signs that participated in the construction of a language.

Types of pictographic language

There are two categories of pictographic languages: conventional and unconventional languages.

Conventional language

Conventional languages ​​are those that have a certain number of established pictograms with a defined meaning. They are usually used in contexts in which it is possible to spread the specific meaning of each pictogram.

Unconventional language

Non-conventional languages ​​are those that do not have a defined number of pictograms and whose meaning is left to interpretation.

In these cases, the design of the images is focused in such a way that they are easily understandable; however, confusion can occur.

The 10 main uses of pictographic language

1- Languages ​​based on pictograms

The Chinese language is characterized because its characters correspond to pictograms. This system was also adopted by other languages, such as Japanese.

Each of the characters in these languages ​​represents a certain idea or object. These representations are often figurative; that means that they do not pretend to present exactly the concept to which they refer.

In the Chinese language, the existence of more than 50,000 characters or pictograms has been calculated. However, in ordinary language only about 3,000 are used, and in more intellectual areas a maximum usage of about 10,000 characters is considered.

2- Children's pictograms

Pictograms are essential tools during the early stages of learning. Therefore, these have different uses within the daily lives of children: in children's stories, games, toys and objects that are used in nurseries.

The use of these images is essential to help children understand the rules, follow stories or structure their routines.

In addition, they are key elements to help them understand different processes that they must know for learning to read and write.

3- Traffic signs

Traffic signs are another everyday example of the use of pictographic language. In this case, verbal language is not possible because information must be given quickly, so that any driver can understand it while driving.

This type of pictogram is of the conventional type. This means that your images have a common meaning for all those who use them and are not subject to interpretation.

4- DOT system

The DOT pictograms come from a study by the United States Department of Transportation (DOT). This research established the need for a standardized set of signs for all highways in this country.

Thanks to this, the American Institute of Graphic Arts in the USA designed a standardized set of pictograms.

This language has transcended internationally and is currently used in places that attract speakers of different languages, such as airports, hotels and train stations.

5- ISO 7001 Standard

It is a standard published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO, for its acronym in English).

It aims to put together a series of symbols of public information that are widely used in different countries with different mother tongues.

This set of pictograms is the result of different tests in countries and cultures. These include the symbols representing restrooms, parking lots and the international symbol of access, identified with a wheelchair.

6- Pharmaceutical pictograms

Pictographic language is also used within the pharmaceutical field to provide information on the use of a drug.

This tool is useful for those who do not have the use of verbal language or who receive a drug in a language other than their mother tongue.

These images are used to convey information about drug dosages, how to use them, frequency, and precautions.

7- CLP pictograms

The CLP regulation is an international system of pictograms designed to warn of the risks of chemical products.

These images include a system for classifying and labeling products, so that their risks to human life and the environment are informed.

8- Computer Icons

In the field of computing, icons are a pictogram language used to represent the different elements of a graphical operating system.

These images represent files, folders, programs, and applications.

9- Pictograms in infographics

Infographics are a graphic communication format characterized by the use of pictograms. This is due to the intention to convey a large amount of information using little text, but with great support from images.

In these cases, pictograms are useful for expressing complete concepts through a single image. For this reason they are used to replace titles or entire paragraphs of text, and to establish relationships between different concepts.

10. Emoticons and emojis

Emoticons or emoticons are sequences of characters that represent human emotions.

Initially, they made reference only to the human face and emotions such as sadness, joy or crying. However, as time went by, new and increasingly complex emoticons were developed.

This pictographic language was not created to replace verbal language, but to complement it in digital written messages, such as email, text messages or chat.

For their part, emojis are emoticons transformed into images, which allows the pictograms to be even clearer.

Thanks to this development, increasingly complete and expressive gestures of human emotions and characteristics have also been incorporated.

References

1. Advancing Pharmacy Worldwide. (SF). Pictogram Software. Recovered from: fip.org
2. Educatall. (SF). Pictograms-An essential tool for children with special needs. Recovered from: educatall.com
3. European Chemicals Agency. (SF). CLP Pictograms. Recovered from: echa.europa.eu
4. New World Encyclopedia. (SF). Pictogram. Recovered from: newworldencyclopedia.org
5. The editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. (2012). Pictography. Recovered from: britannica.com