Fox Emoji

An orange fox face with a white muzzle and pointed ears. 🦊 is cleverness personified, the emoji of anyone who outsmarts their surroundings. The fox has been the trickster archetype in storytelling for over 2,500 years, from Aesop's Fables (6th century BC) to Japanese kitsune legends to Roald Dahl's Fantastic Mr Fox (1970).

Added in Unicode 9.0 (2016). In texting, 🦊 means clever, sly, cunning, or attractive ("foxy"). It's the emoji you send when someone makes a smart move, catches a lie, or navigates a tricky situation with grace.

The fox also carries a specific pop culture weight thanks to Norwegian comedy duo Ylvis, whose "The Fox (What Does the Fox Say?)" went absurdly viral in 2013, accumulating over 1 billion YouTube views. A novelty song by two Norwegian TV hosts became one of the most-watched music videos in history. That's fox energy: unexpected success through sheer audacity.

In Japanese mythology, the kitsune (fox spirit) is one of the most complex supernatural creatures. Kitsune can shapeshift into human form, possess extraordinary intelligence, and serve as messengers of Inari, the Shinto god of rice and prosperity. A kitsune gains an additional tail for each century it lives, maxing out at nine tails, which represents near-godlike power. The nine-tailed fox appears across Japanese, Chinese, and Korean mythology.

🦊 covers the full fox spectrum.

Cleverness. 'That was a 🦊 move' or 'You outsmarted everyone 🦊.' The fox-as-clever reading is the oldest metaphor in the book, literally: the fox is the most common animal in Aesop's Fables, appearing more frequently than any other creature.

Attractiveness. 'Looking foxy 🦊' uses the slang meaning of 'foxy' (attractive, appealing) that's been in English since the 1940s. The fox's sleek appearance translates to human compliment.

Slyness. 'I see what you did there 🦊' or 'Sneaky 🦊.' The fox-as-trickster reading, coming from Aesop through Reynard the Fox through modern idiom.

Firefox. In tech, 🦊 references the Firefox browser. Mozilla's fox-wrapping-around-a-globe logo made the fox a tech mascot. (Fun fact: the animal in the Firefox logo is actually a red panda#Branding), not a fox, despite the name.)

Japanese culture. For fans of anime, manga, and Japanese mythology, 🦊 references kitsune. The nine-tailed fox is one of the most powerful yokai in Japanese folklore, appearing in Naruto (Kurama), Pokémon (Ninetales), and countless other works.

Both. 'Foxy' as slang for attractive has been in English since the 1940s, but 🦊 also means clever without any romantic undertone. 'Looking foxy 🦊' = flirty. 'Smart move 🦊' = respectful. Context determines whether the fox is complimenting appearance or intelligence.

The fox has been a central character in human storytelling since the earliest recorded fables.

Aesop (6th century BC, ancient Greece) made the fox the most frequently appearing animal in his fables. In "The Fox and the Grapes", a fox who can't reach grapes dismisses them as sour, giving us the phrase "sour grapes." In "The Fox and the Crow"), the fox flatters a crow into dropping cheese. The fox in Aesop is clever but sometimes too clever, which is exactly how trickster figures work across cultures.

Reynard the Fox (12th century medieval Europe) was a fox character who used wit to defeat more powerful animals. The tales were so popular that the French word for fox, 'renard,' literally comes from the character's name. A fictional fox became the actual word for the animal. That's cultural penetration.

In Japanese mythology, the kitsune (fox spirit) is one of the most revered and feared yokai. Kitsune serve Inari, the Shinto god of rice, fertility, and prosperity. Stone fox statues guard Inari shrines across Japan (there are over 30,000 Inari shrines in the country). A kitsune can shapeshift into human form, grows additional tails with age (up to nine), and can be either benevolent (zenko) or mischievous (yako).

In Chinese mythology, the nine-tailed fox (huli jing) is a seductive and powerful spirit. In Korean mythology, the kumiho is a nine-tailed fox that must eat human hearts. Same creature, different moral frameworks depending on the culture.

Roald Dahl's Fantastic Mr Fox (1970) reimagined the fox-as-trickster for children. Wes Anderson's 2009 film adaptation) turned it into one of the most celebrated animated films of the 21st century.

Then in September 2013, Norwegian comedy duo Ylvis released "The Fox (What Does the Fox Say?)", a deliberately absurd novelty song intended as a joke for their talk show. It went viral, hit #6 on the US Billboard Hot 100, and has accumulated over 1 billion YouTube views. Two Norwegian TV hosts accidentally created one of the most-watched music videos in history by asking what sound a fox makes. Ring-ding-ding-ding-dingeringeding.

Approved in Unicode 9.0 (2016) as U+1F98AU+1F98A FOX FACE. Added to Emoji 3.0 in 2016.

1. -550Aesop writes fables featuring the fox as a trickster, including 'The Fox and the Grapes' (origin of 'sour grapes')
2. 1175Reynard the Fox tales emerge in medieval Europe. The character is so popular that the French word for fox ('renard') comes from his name
3. 1970Roald Dahl publishes Fantastic Mr Fox, reimagining the fox trickster for children↗
4. 2004Mozilla Firefox browser launches, giving the fox a tech identity (though the logo is actually a red panda)↗
5. 2009Wes Anderson's Fantastic Mr. Fox film becomes a critical and cult classic↗
6. 2013Ylvis's 'What Does the Fox Say?' goes viral, eventually reaching 1B+ YouTube views↗
7. 2016Unicode 9.0 adds 🦊 Fox Face (U+1F98A)↗

Fox mythology varies dramatically by culture.

In Western tradition (Aesop, Reynard, English idiom), the fox is clever but morally ambiguous. 'Sly as a fox' is a compliment and a warning. 'Outfoxed' means outwitted. The Western fox is respected for intelligence but not trusted.

In Japan, foxes are supernatural. Kitsune can be benevolent guardians or dangerous tricksters. They serve Inari, the rice god, making them connected to prosperity and harvest. Over 30,000 Inari shrines across Japan are guarded by stone fox statues.

In China, the nine-tailed fox (huli jing) is a seductive spirit, often female, that can bring fortune or ruin. In Korea, the kumiho is more straightforwardly dangerous: it must consume human hearts to survive.

In Native American traditions, the fox plays various roles depending on the tribe: trickster, creator's helper, or benign figure. The fox's adaptability across these cultures mirrors the animal's real-world adaptability to different environments.

• •The French word for fox, 'renard,' comes from a fictional character. Before Reynard, the French word for fox was 'goupil.' A 12th-century story literally changed the French language.
• •Ylvis's "What Does the Fox Say?" was meant to be a joke for Norwegian TV. It became one of the most-watched music videos ever (1B+ views) and hit #6 on the US Billboard Hot 100.
• •The fox is the most frequently appearing animal in Aesop's Fables, appearing more than any other creature. Our 2,500-year-old archetype of cleverness is a fox.
• •Firefox#Branding) is named after a fox, but the animal in the logo is actually a red panda, which is also called a firefox in some traditions.
• •There are over 30,000 Inari shrines in Japan, each guarded by stone kitsune (fox) statues. The fox serves Inari, the Shinto god of rice and prosperity.
• •In Japanese kitsune lore, a fox gains an additional tail for each century it lives, maxing at nine tails (near-godlike power). Naruto's Kurama and Pokémon's Ninetales both reference this tradition.
• •The 'foxy' slang meaning (sexually attractive) has been in English since the 1940s. Jimi Hendrix's "Foxy Lady" (1967) helped mainstream it.

• •The 'sly fox' reading can be negative. Calling someone a fox might mean you admire their cleverness or that you think they're untrustworthy. Context and tone determine which.
• •Firefox's logo is NOT a fox. It's a red panda, also known as a 'firefox.' Most people assume it's a fox wrapping around the globe, but Mozilla chose the red panda name specifically.

• •"What Does the Fox Say?" by Ylvis (2013) is the defining fox pop culture moment of the 21st century. Over 1 billion YouTube views. A Norwegian joke that became a global phenomenon. The Ellen interview shows how baffled even the creators were by its success.
• •Fantastic Mr Fox) (Wes Anderson, 2009) turned Roald Dahl's 1970 novel into one of the most acclaimed animated films of the century. George Clooney voiced Mr Fox. The film's stop-motion style became iconic. It's the fox-as-family-protector, using wit instead of strength.
• •Naruto's Kurama) (nine-tailed fox) brought Japanese kitsune mythology to a global anime audience. The nine-tailed beast sealed inside Naruto is one of the series' most emotional plotlines.
• •Pokémon's Ninetales and Vulpix are directly based on the nine-tailed kitsune legend. The name combines 'nine' and 'tales/tails.'
• •Aesop's "The Fox and the Grapes" (6th century BC) gave us the phrase 'sour grapes,' still used 2,500 years later. A fox who can't reach grapes declares they were probably sour anyway. The earliest documented case of rationalized failure.
• •Reynard the Fox (12th century) was so popular that the French word for fox literally changed from 'goupil' to 'renard.' No other fictional character has renamed a real animal.
• •Jimi Hendrix's "Foxy Lady" (1967) helped establish 'foxy' as mainstream slang for sexually attractive. The song's opening riff is one of the most recognized in rock history.

• •🦊 is U+1F98AU+1F98A. Unicode name: FOX FACE. Common shortcodes: :fox::fox: or :fox_face::fox_face: (Slack, Discord, GitHub). Part of Unicode 9.0 (2016).
• •For gaming/anime apps: 🦊 maps to kitsune/nine-tailed fox mythology. Consider pairing with ⛩️ (Shinto shrine) for Japanese context.
• •Firefox's logo is a red panda, not a fox. If building a browser-detection feature, don't use 🦊 for Firefox without noting this irony.

See the full Emoji Developer Tools guide for regex patterns, encoding helpers, and more.