Icons expressing time and progress need mirroring

What it is

Reading-order-relative icon mirroring applies when an arrow, chevron, or step graphic uses horizontal space for previous/next or interface-step order. Its orientation should agree with the reading and navigation sequence of a right-to-left interface. What reverses is the relative relation anchored to reading order, not every symbol concerned with time, history, or progress.

Why it happens

Icon orientation lets users predict where a state change will go. In an interface that organizes previous and next along reading order, the arrow needs to point toward the side where the target item will appear. If item and step order switch to RTL while the icon retains another mapping, cue and destination conflict. Labels reduce ambiguity, but icon-only controls still depend on direction; icon, item order, and transition should derive from the same logical start/end mapping.

Where it stops holding

Not every representation of time follows writing direction. Step chevrons and pagination usually belong to interface sequence; play triangles, audiovisual timelines, clock faces, and undo/redo may follow media, physical, or target-platform conventions. Global professional tools can also preserve an established direction. Decisions should follow the target platform's RTL guidance and local validation, not a blanket “temporal icons mirror” rule.

Applying it

• Tag each directional asset by meaning—previous, next, expand, back, or physical orientation—and automatically mirror only relative-navigation assets.
• Switch previous/next icons, labels, pagination order, and transitions as one behavior so cues cannot disagree.
• Follow target-platform conventions for media, clocks, and specialist tools, retaining text labels where interpretation is uncertain.
• Test repeated paging, step progression, and history navigation in RTL; capture first-click errors and time spent locating the next item.

Related

• Same group: S1.02.1 Mirroring applies to layout and direction, not every graphic · S1.02.3 Icons with physical direction should not be mirrored · S1.02.4 Numbers and Latin-script runs remain left-to-right inline · S1.02.5 Motion and gesture directions must be mirrored together
• Adjacent: I3.02 Progress and step state · G2.04 Pagination and continuous browsing
• Search terms: temporal icon direction · RTL navigation icons · previous next mirroring