RAWR

Cultural appropriation
✦﹒Cultural appropriation is defined as using elements of a closed/non dominant culture, usually by a dominant culture, in a way that reinforces stereotypes, dehumanises oppressed groups or ignores and disrespects the original meaning. This can include taking traditions like hairstyles, clothing, rituals and language and using it for your own personal gain, without respecting the original use or meaning. Cultural appropriation can be difficult to understand and you may not realise when you are doing it yourself.Cultural appreciation
✦﹒Cultural appreciation is borrowing or using elements of another culture to explore, support and learn about it in a respectful and understanding way- while involving those from that culture in the process. Cultural appreciation should elevate the voices and experiences of members of a cultural group. Some examples of Cultural appreciation is ordering food from a Chinese restaurant or being invited to a Muslim wedding, researching, and wearing a headscarf to show respect during the wedding.

Types of cultural appropriation

Exchange- The exchange of elements from two cultures that are equal in power.
Dominance- A dominant culture stealing elements from a historicaly marginalised community that has had a dominant culture forced upon it. (colonialism)
Exploitation- Stealing elements from a closed culture without compensation, permission, or reciprocity.
Transculturation- Combining elements from multiple cultures making it difficult to identify the origional source.

✦﹒Closed language symbols are symbols or characters that are from the languages of closed cultures, historically marginalised communities and non dominant cultures. Using closed language characters if you are not from that culture can be a form of cultural appropriation, as the language symbols lose their original meaning when used to make a profile or online space ' look pretty'. These symbols and characters should not be used for aesthetic purposes. You can check if the symbols you want to use are from closed cultures here.

A non exaustive list of commonly used closed language symbols:
𓇷 : Egyptian Hieroglyph
𓄹 𓄼 : Egyptian Hieroglyph
𓄧 : Egyptian Hieroglyph
𓄲, 𓄳, 𓄴, 𓄵, 𓄶, 𓄷 : Egyptian Hieroglyph
𓊔 : Egyptian Hieroglyph
𓍢, 𓂅 : Egyptian Hieroglyph
𓐆 : Egyptian Hieroglyph
𓌹𓌺 : Egyptian Hieroglyph
𓈈 : Egyptian Hieroglyph
人 : Chinese Language
乂 : Chinese Language
ฅ : Thai Language
๑ : Thai Language
ᘂ, ᘃ, ᘎ, ᘏ, ᕱ, ᕳ, ᕲ, ᕰ, ᘄ, ᘅ, ᘆ, ᘇ, ᘈ, ᘉ, ᘊ, ᘋ, ᘌ, ᘍ, ᘐ, ᘑ, ᐟ(.ᐟ ) : Canadian Aboriginal Syllabics
૮ : Gujarati Language
ઇ ઉ : Gujarati Language
ᜊ : Tagalog
꒰ ꒱ : Yi Radical
ა : Georgian
꒦꒷ : Oriya Script
୨୧ : Oriya
୭ : Oriya
ପ : Oriya
゛: Japanese Language
ミ : Japanese Language
ツ : Japanese Language
ᄋ : Hangul
౨ : Telugu
ৎ : Bengali
(Often combinated as ౨ৎ)
ꔫ : Vai Language (The Vai syllable bhi)
ꕤ : Vai Language (The Vai syllable za)
ꔛ : Vai launguage
ഒ : Malayalam
७ ॑ ़ ं ् ऻ ः ॰ ॢ ॄ ॐ : Devanagari
𖠗 𖧷 𖧧 : Bamum
人乂〝〞【】〈 〉《》「」『』〔〕〖〗〘〙〚〛◌〪◌〬◌〭 〮 〷〻: CJK Symbols and Punctuation
꧁꧂: Javanese Language

Why is it important we do not use closed langauge symbols?
It is important not to use Closed Language Symbols/characters if you are not apart of that culture, as language is one of the most important parts of any culture. Language is much more than just a tool of communication, it is also heavily linked to our cultural heritage. A lot of the language symbols that are used in online spaces have significant cultural or religious meanings and are really valued by their people, so it would be disrespectful to take these and use them in our profiles or online spaces whilst not honoring the original meaning of the symbols. So using closed language symbols that are not from your own culture for aesthetic is cultural appropriation as they lose their significant cultural and religious meanings.Why is it harmful if we use closed language symbols for aesthetic?
Expression of culture is almost impossible without the use of language, as communication of values, beliefs, and practices within ones own culture is dependent on language and understanding one another. Using these symbols for aesthetic/ taking part in cultural appropriation can be very harmful towards these closed or marginalised communities, as it contributes to the eradication of certain societies cultural history and identity. This can lead to people feeling disconnected to their own cultures which can have a damaging effect on how we perceive these cultures and recognise their histories and experiences. This may then cause the extinction of their languages and civilizations.

Alternatives
There are many alternative symbols you can use in your profiles and online spaces that are not from closed cultures or historically marginalised communities. The fairy tales staff team have created a carrd that consists of a collection of non-closed language symbols! You are more than welcome to use these symbols in your profile instead: (click the button below)