The first SMS in history was sent on 3 December 1992 by British engineer Neil Papworth; the message read \"Merry Christmas\" and marked the beginning of a new era in mobile communication.
Who sent it
Neil Papworth, a software engineer working on messaging systems, composed and sent the message from a computer terminal as part of testing for the new Short Message Service technology being developed for mobile networks.
What the message said and to whom
The text simply read \"Merry Christmas\" and was received by Richard Jarvis on an Orbitel 901 mobile handset at a Vodafone Christmas event; the device was large by modern standards and the demonstration was intended to show SMS working over the commercial network.
Why it matters
Although the first SMS was a brief technical demonstration, SMS rapidly became a ubiquitous way to communicate during the pre‑smartphone era, introducing conventions such as the 160‑character limit and early forms of shorthand and emoticons that shaped later messaging culture.
Takeaway
That modest "Merry Christmas" sent in 1992 foreshadowed a massive shift in how people exchange short written messages, transforming mobile phones from voice‑only devices into the powerful communication tools that paved the way for today’s messaging apps.