The Great Emoji Conspiracy: Why The Flag Of Texas Emoji (🇺🇸-TX) Doesn't Officially Exist And The Chilean Connection

The digital world has a major gap for Texans, and it’s a tiny, frustrating one: the missing Texas flag emoji. As of December 2025, while the Lone Star State is one of the most iconic and culturally distinct regions in the United States, its famous flag—the "Lone Star Flag"—does not have a dedicated, universally available emoji on standard keyboards. This absence has led to a major digital identity crisis, forcing millions to rely on a controversial look-alike that has even sparked a legislative resolution.

This deep dive explores the technical, political, and cultural reasons behind the missing symbol, revealing the surprising 'secret' code that allows a Texas flag emoji to appear on some platforms, the state official who tried to shame users out of the substitution, and why a true, standalone Texas emoji may never arrive.

The Technical Truth: Why Unicode Blocks the Lone Star Flag

The primary reason the Texas flag emoji (often sought as a simple 🇹🇽 or 🇺🇸-TX) is absent from your standard iPhone or Android keyboard is rooted in the policies of the Unicode Consortium. This non-profit organization is responsible for setting the global standard for text and emoji across all digital platforms, ensuring that a character sent from a Samsung phone looks the same on an Apple device.

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The Consortium’s policy for flags is strict: they only accept proposals for flags representing sovereign nations (like 🇨🇱 for Chile or 🇺🇸 for the United States) or major subdivisions that are officially recognized under the ISO 3166-1 standard.

In 2017, the Unicode Consortium made a decisive move, announcing they would no longer accept proposals for new flags, effectively slamming the door on any future dedicated state or city flags. This means that while Texas has the cultural weight of a nation, its status as a U.S. state prevents it from getting the same emoji treatment as countries like Mexico or Canada.

This decision impacts all U.S. states, including other culturally significant regions like California, Florida, and New York, which also lack a dedicated emoji. The policy is designed to prevent the emoji keyboard from becoming bloated with thousands of regional flags, a logistical and technical nightmare for developers.

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The 'Secret' Texas Flag Emoji Code: Subdivision Flags

Despite the official block, a technical workaround exists, known as a Subdivision Flag or a Tag Sequence. This method uses a combination of existing characters to render a regional flag, provided the platform supports it.

The code for the Texas flag is a complex sequence of characters: 🏴 + 󠁵 + 󠁳 + 󠁴 + 󠁸 + 󠁿. This sequence combines the Black Flag emoji (🏴) with a series of special, invisible "tag" characters that spell out the ISO 3166-2 code for Texas, which is US-TX.

• Black Flag (🏴): The starting character for all subdivision flags.
• Tag Sequence: The hidden characters that designate "US" and "TX".
• Result: On platforms that recognize this sequence, it renders as a small, clean Texas flag.

The catch? Support for this technical flag is inconsistent. Platforms like WhatsApp and Twitter (now X) have historically supported the rendering of the Texas flag, allowing users to see the correct symbol. However, most major operating systems, including Apple iOS and Google Android, often choose not to support the rendering of *any* U.S. state subdivision flags, leaving users with the generic black flag or a broken sequence.

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The Great Substitution: Chilean Flag vs. Lone Star Flag Controversy

The lack of a universally available Texas flag emoji has led to the most prominent controversy in the digital Texas sphere: the widespread use of the Chilean flag emoji (🇨🇱) as a stand-in.

At a glance, the two flags are strikingly similar, both featuring a single star on a blue field and prominent red and white stripes. However, there are crucial differences:

For years, the Chilean flag emoji has been the default choice for Texans and Texas enthusiasts on social media, simply because it is the closest available option. This has caused confusion for many, including the people of Chile, who often see their national symbol co-opted for Texas pride.

The Legislative Pushback: HCR 75 and Rep. Tom Oliverson

The emoji substitution became so pervasive that it reached the floor of the Texas State Legislature. In a move that garnered national attention, State Representative Tom Oliverson (R-Cypress) introduced House Concurrent Resolution 75 (HCR 75).

The resolution, filed in 2017, was a light-hearted yet serious attempt to address the confusion. HCR 75 specifically urged Texans to stop using the Chilean flag emoji (🇨🇱) as a substitute for the Texas flag.

The resolution humorously declared that the Texas flag, which symbolizes the state's spirit and history, "can in no way compare to or be substituted for" the flag of the Republic of Chile, "although it is a nice flag." Oliverson's aim was to raise awareness and encourage the proper representation of the Lone Star State.

While HCR 75 was non-binding, it highlighted the intense digital patriotism and the frustration among Texans who value the distinct identity of their state's symbol. This legislative action cemented the Chilean flag emoji as a major point of discussion in the ongoing saga of the missing Texas emoji.

The Future of Texas Emojis: Dedicated Apps and State Advocacy

With the Unicode Consortium unlikely to reverse its policy on state flags, the future of a dedicated Texas emoji lies in alternative solutions and platform-specific advocacy.

One popular solution has been the creation of third-party Texas Emoji apps, such as TexMoji. These applications provide a custom keyboard with dozens of Texas-themed graphics, including the Lone Star Flag, a cowboy boot, the Alamo, and tacos.

Furthermore, Texas officials continue to press technology giants directly. For instance, Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham has publicly advocated for Apple to create and include Texas-specific emojis, recognizing the state's unique culture and the demand from its population.

The technical reality is clear: a universal, standalone Texas flag emoji will likely never be added to the standard keyboard. However, the culture of the Lone Star State is too strong to be contained by a technical standard. Between the subdivision flag on certain apps, the use of third-party keyboards, and the ongoing debate over the Chilean flag, the digital quest for the flag of Texas emoji remains a powerful symbol of state pride in the 21st century.