Emoji creator Unicode Inc. on Monday released the next version of its international mobile coding system.

Version 7.0 of the Unicode Standard adds 2,834 new characters, including currency symbols for the Russian ruble and Azerbaijani manat and 250 emojis.

According to Unicode, most of the new emoji characters (those yellow smiley faces and animal icons people use in text messages) are actually not the product of many hours at a think tank. Instead, they derive from the long-standing Wingdings and Webdings fonts.

Skim through the full list of new emojis online. One option sure to be popular with users is "reverse hand with middle finger extended."

But despite the addition of a hot pepper, thermometer, and the Vulcan salute, the lineup still doesn't include any African-American characters. It does, however, promise a number of "black" pointing fingers.

That's likely not enough to satisfy the growing demand to close the emoji diversity gap. Apple got involved in the fight earlier this year, saying in March that the company is working with the Unicode Consortium to update its standards.

Cupertino's current characters are based on the Unicode Standarda coding system designed to fit worldwide platforms and various language texts. The last major emoji update came in 2012, when Apple released iOS 6, with the addition of two new images representing gay and lesbian couples: two men and two women holding hands.

Unicode did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but its FAQ page does address the issue:

"Unicode does not require a particular racial or ethnic appearanceor for that matter, a particular hair style: bald or hirsute. However, because there are concerns regarding the emoji characters for people, proposals are being developed by Unicode Consortium members to provide more diversity."

Of course, you can't start flipping folks the bird or expressing emotions via a slightly frowning face until your respective operating system manufacturer issues an update.

The new emoji library remains in the hands of Apple, Google, and Microsoft, which must push out a Unicode 7.0-enabled software update before users can start exploring the nuances of "turned north west pointing leaf" versus "turned south east pointing leaf."

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