Believe it or not, the concept of the hashtag is officially 10 years old.
Wednesday marks the trending conversation social media tool's official birthday. On Aug. 23, 2007, Chris Messina tweeted a suggestion to use the hashtag as a unifier of conversations on the platform.
While it's only been a decade, it's kind of hard to imagine the world before hashtags.
What marketing campaign is complete without a hashtag? What social movement can gain momentum without tweeps sharing and re-sharing viral tags?
Social media and the hashtag have quite literally changed the way we interact and communicate online ... and offline too. Seriously, who isn't guilty of saying "hashtag" out loud in a conversation with friends every once in a while these days?
To commemorate this major anniversary, we thought we'd highlight a few of the biggest trending hashtag's the Arab world has seen in the past decade, with the help of Hill+Knowlton Strategies out of Dubai.
1. #Mecca_Live
The hashtag launched back in 2015, during Snapchat’s launch in Saudi Arabia. Saudis were looking to have Mecca to go live on the night of 27th of Ramadan. A partnership with STC saw #Mecca_live trending in four Arab countries.
2. #MyDubai
In January of 2014, Crown Prince of Dubai Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed launched this initiative through his Twitter account. The goal was to create an online autobiography of Dubai through pictures and videos.
3. #WhiteFriday
White Friday is a campaign created with Souq.com. Similar to Black Friday in the United States, it is specific to the region when there are sales on all items. The day features the biggest online discounts and offers on many categories, products, as well as some exclusive items.
4. خلنا_نجتمع#
Vimto Arabia, the default drink of Ramadan, has been using the same hashtag every year during the holy month for the last 5 years. The trending tag is meant to emphasize the spirit of family time and giving back to the community.
5. #YallaCareem and #GoCareem
As a major part of its rebranding in 2016, Careem revealed a new logo and launched a hashtag. The youthful spirit of Careem was promoted along with the ride-hailing services new look and visual identity.