• What’s being communicated?

Here is the ‘Browser’ section in Gmail. Multiple icons are used to represent different categories. Such as a trash can is using to symbol spam, a clock is using to symbol delay, etc.

  • What concepts need to be learned?

I think the concepts behind Gmail’s icons are: 1. All the icons are created based on real-world symbols. 2. Each icon represents a whole word or concept, not just a single letter.

In addition, the appearance of Gmail’s icons and the original Sumerian alphabet, Mayan pictographs, or Egyptian hieroglyphics is different. The original symbols rely more on lines, while Gmail’s icons rely more on shapes.

  • What metaphors are being used?

Gmail’s:
1.star = important; 2.inbox = mailbox; 3.arrow = sent; 4.plus = create a new; etc.

original Sumerian alphabet:
1.quadrangle = sun; 2.triangle+f = bird; etc.