Are there any differences between ideograms and pictograms?

If we want to understand the differences between ideograms and pictograms, we have to define both terms clearly. Pictograms are pictures or images which are created from an object in a consistent way. On the other hand, ideograms are symbols which are crated from geometric shapes and they also represent ideas. However, people can use both of them to communicate each other. Especially, in the history, Egyptians, Sumerians, Aztecs, American Indians and even cavemen used pictograms and ideograms to communicate and preserve their knowledge. Moreover, Pictograms are more “picture like” forms, but ideograms are more abstract derived forms. For instance, you can tell the ‘sun’ with a pictogram, but you can tell the ‘heat’ only with a ideogram. Because of that,  understanding ideograms sometimes might be more diffucult than understanding pictograms.

There are some common points for both of them. İdeograms and pictograms do not represent words or sounds in a particular language. When people starts to use pictograms like a word in a language, they are defined like word-writing, or ‘logograms’. There should be some essential requirements that you can use these two terms too such as using similar forms and meanings for words and conventional relationship between symbols and interpretations.

Finally, decide them which one is ideogram and which one is pictogram 😉

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(ideogram)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(pictogram)

(ideogram)

(pictogram)