🫔
Tamale
tə-MAH-lee
Definitions
1
Food · Cultural
Common
A traditional Mesoamerican dish made of masa (corn dough) filled with meats, cheeses, fruits, or vegetables, wrapped in corn husks or banana leaves and steamed.
Used to represent Mexican and Latin American cuisine, cultural celebrations, or home cooking.
My grandma is making her famous tamales for Christmas Eve! 🫔👵
Family messaging
Best street food in Mexico City thread! Starting with these amazing 🫔🫔🫔
Social media food post
Symbolizes Latin American heritage, family gatherings, and holidays like Christmas and Day of the Dead when tamales are traditionally prepared.
2
Food · Celebration
Uncommon
Used metaphorically to represent cultural heritage, family traditions, or labor-intensive but rewarding activities.
Often used in contexts celebrating Hispanic/Latino culture or traditional cooking.
Spending the weekend connecting with my Mexican roots 🫔❤️
Instagram caption
Making tamales is often a communal activity (tamalada) where families gather to prepare large batches, symbolizing cooperation and tradition.
Evolution Timeline
2020
Added to Unicode 13.0 as part of increased representation of global foods.
Growing recognition of Latin American cuisine in digital communication.
2021
Gained popularity during holiday seasons as representation of cultural traditions.
Increased social media sharing of family cooking traditions during pandemic.
Cultural Context
Tamales date back to ancient Mesoamerican civilizations including Aztec and Maya, making this emoji a representation of indigenous food traditions that predate European contact.
The tamalada (tamale-making party) represents community bonding and intergenerational knowledge transfer, with the emoji sometimes used to represent these gatherings.
While most associated with Mexico, tamales exist throughout Latin America with regional variations, from Colombian tamales wrapped in banana leaves to sweet Guatemalan varieties.
The tamale emoji was added relatively recently (2020) as part of efforts to diversify food representation beyond Western cuisine in digital communication.
Regional Variations
Mexico
Used frequently to represent everyday food and cultural identity rather than exotic cuisine.
United States
Primarily associated with Mexican-American culture and cuisine, especially in the Southwest and California.
Generational Usage
Gen_X: Typically used in family communication contexts about gatherings, cooking, and cultural traditions.
Gen_Z: Often used in content about cultural identity, heritage pride, and authentic food experiences on TikTok and Instagram.
Older: Less frequently used, but may appear in holiday and family-oriented messages about traditional cooking.
Millennials: Frequently used when sharing family recipes, holiday traditions, and food tourism experiences across platforms.
Common Combinations
🫔❤️
Love for tamales or Latin American cuisine and culture.
Often used to express cultural pride or appreciation for traditional foods.
🫔🌮
Mexican or Latin American cuisine.
Used when discussing or sharing Mexican food experiences.
🫔👵
Grandmother's tamales or traditional family recipes.
References the cultural tradition of recipes passed down through generations.
🫔🎄
Christmas tamales or holiday food traditions.
References the tradition of making tamales for Christmas in many Latin American cultures.