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Apictogram (alsopictogramme,pictograph, or simplypicto[1]) is a graphicalsymbol that conveys meaning through its visual resemblance to a physical object. Pictograms are used in systems of writing and visual communication. A pictography is awriting system[2] which uses pictograms. Some pictograms, such ashazard pictograms, may be elements offormal languages.
In the field ofprehistoric art, the term "pictograph" has a different definition, and specifically refers to art painted on rock surfaces. Pictographs are contrasted withpetroglyphs, which are carved or incised.
Small pictograms displayed on acomputer screen in order to help the user navigate are calledicons.
Early written symbols were based on pictograms (pictures which resemble what they signify) andideograms (symbols which represent ideas). Ancient Sumerian, Egyptian, and Chinese civilizations began to adapt such symbols to represent concepts, developing them intologographic writing systems. Pictograms are still in use as the main medium of written communication in some non-literate cultures in Africa, the Americas, and Oceania.[citation needed] Pictograms are often used as simple, pictorial, representational symbols by most contemporary cultures.
Pictograms can be considered an art form, or can be considered a written language and are designated as such inPre-Columbian art,Native American art, AncientMesopotamia andPainting in the Americas before Colonization.[3][4] One example of many is theRock art of the Chumash people, part of theNative American history of California.In 2011, UNESCO's World Heritage List added "Petroglyph Complexes of the Mongolian Altai, Mongolia"[5] to celebrate the importance of the pictograms engraved in rocks.
Some scientists in the field of neuropsychiatry and neuropsychology, such asMario Christian Meyer, are studying the symbolic meaning of indigenous pictographs and petroglyphs,[6] aiming to create new ways of communication between native people and modern scientists to safeguard and valorize their cultural diversity.[7]
![Several prehistoric engravings can be found around La Silla Observatory.[8]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aSignatures_from_the_Past.jpg)
An early modern example of the extensive use of pictograms may be seen in the map in the London suburban timetables of theLondon and North Eastern Railway, 1936–1947, designed byGeorge Dow, in which a variety of pictograms was used to indicate facilities available at or near each station. Pictograms remain in common use today, serving as pictorial, representational signs, instructions, or statistical diagrams. Because of their graphical nature and fairly realistic style, they are widely used to indicate public toilets, or places such as airports and train stations. Because they are a concise way to communicate a concept to people who speak many different languages, pictograms have also been used extensively at theOlympics since the1964 summer games in Tokyo featured designs byMasaru Katsumi [fr]. Later Olympic pictograms have been redesigned for each set of games.[9][10][11]
Pictographic writing as a modernist poetic technique is credited toEzra Pound, thoughFrenchsurrealists credit thePacific NorthwestAmerican Indians ofAlaska who introduced writing, viatotem poles, toNorth America.[12]
Contemporary artistXu Bing created Book from the Ground, a universal language made up of pictograms collected from around the world. A Book from the Ground chat program has been exhibited in museums and galleries internationally.
Emojis are a type of pictogram.
In statistics, pictograms are charts in which icons represent numbers to make it more interesting and easier to understand. A key is often included to indicate what each icon represents. All icons must be of the same size, but a fraction of an icon can be used to show the respective fraction of that amount.[13]
For example, the following table:
| can be graphed as follows:
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Key: = 10 letters;  = 5 lettersAs the values are rounded to the nearest 5 letters, the second icon on Tuesday is the left half of the original. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Miscommunication, for example due to language barriers or cognitive impairment, is a relevant factor formisdiagnosis in medicine. Pictograms and other forms of visual aids have therefore been used to ease communication and improve patient care, for example by ensuring medication adherence.[14] Reviews found especially pronounced effects inlow-literacy patients.[15][16]
There is regular use of pictograms for products used in agriculture to aid hazard recognition, and also to advise on the correct usage ofagrochemicals for agricultural workers with limited reading skills. This is often a national legal requirement, and many pictograms are standard throughout the industry.[17]
Pictograms can often transcend languages in that they can communicate to speakers of a number of tongues and language families equally effectively, even if the languages and cultures are completely different. This is whyroad signs and similar pictographic material are often applied as global standards expected to be understood by nearly all.
A standard set of pictograms was defined in theinternational standardISO 7001: Public Information Symbols. Other common sets of pictographs are thelaundry symbols used on clothing tags and thechemical hazard symbols as standardized by theGHS system.
Pictograms have been popularized in use on the Internet and insoftware, better known as "icons" displayed on a computer screen in order to help user navigate a computer system or mobile device.
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