diff --git a/.claude/notes.json b/.claude/notes.json
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..822d7bd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.claude/notes.json
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+{
+  "enabled": true,
+  "max_excerpt_length": 5000,
+  "max_prompts": 2,
+  "notes_ref": "claude-conversations",
+  "exclude_patterns": ["password", "token", "key", "secret"],
+  "user_emoji": "🧑",
+  "assistant_emoji": "🤖"
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index afad772..f222f3a 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -4,6 +4,8 @@
 
 ⭐️ `cnotes` is pronounced like 💵 c-notes or 🏊 [_cenotes_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cenote)
 
+The conversation display now includes configurable emojis for user and assistant messages.
+
 ## Quick Start
 
 ```bash
diff --git a/cmd/notes.go b/cmd/notes.go
index 221e493..4d38b6a 100644
--- a/cmd/notes.go
+++ b/cmd/notes.go
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ import (
 	"os/exec"
 	"strings"
 
+	"github.com/imjasonh/cnotes/internal/config"
 	"github.com/imjasonh/cnotes/internal/notes"
 	"github.com/spf13/cobra"
 )
@@ -101,7 +102,8 @@ If no commit is specified, shows notes for HEAD.`,
 		}
 
 		// Pretty-print in Markdown format
-		printConversationMarkdown(*note, commit)
+		cfg := config.LoadNotesConfig(".")
+		printConversationMarkdown(*note, commit, cfg)
 		return nil
 	},
 }
@@ -138,7 +140,7 @@ var listCmd = &cobra.Command{
 }
 
 // printConversationMarkdown formats a conversation note as readable Markdown
-func printConversationMarkdown(note notes.ConversationNote, commit string) {
+func printConversationMarkdown(note notes.ConversationNote, commit string, cfg *config.NotesConfig) {
 	fmt.Printf("# Claude Conversation Notes\n\n")
 
 	// Get commit info
@@ -155,7 +157,7 @@ func printConversationMarkdown(note notes.ConversationNote, commit string) {
 	if note.ConversationExcerpt != "" {
 		fmt.Printf("## Conversation Transcript\n\n")
 		// Clean up and format the conversation excerpt for better readability
-		formatted := formatConversationExcerpt(note.ConversationExcerpt)
+		formatted := formatConversationExcerpt(note.ConversationExcerpt, cfg)
 		fmt.Printf("%s\n\n", formatted)
 	}
 
@@ -164,7 +166,7 @@ func printConversationMarkdown(note notes.ConversationNote, commit string) {
 }
 
 // formatConversationExcerpt cleans up the conversation excerpt for better readability
-func formatConversationExcerpt(excerpt string) string {
+func formatConversationExcerpt(excerpt string, cfg *config.NotesConfig) string {
 	// Replace escaped newlines with actual newlines
 	formatted := strings.ReplaceAll(excerpt, "\\n", "\n")
 
@@ -195,11 +197,11 @@ func formatConversationExcerpt(excerpt string) string {
 		}
 		
 		switch {
-		case strings.HasPrefix(line, "User:"):
+		case strings.HasPrefix(line, "User:") || (cfg != nil && cfg.UserEmoji != "" && strings.HasPrefix(line, cfg.UserEmoji)):
 			// Bold user prompts
 			formattedLines = append(formattedLines, "**"+line+"**")
 			
-		case strings.HasPrefix(line, "Claude:"):
+		case strings.HasPrefix(line, "Claude:") || (cfg != nil && cfg.AssistantEmoji != "" && strings.HasPrefix(line, cfg.AssistantEmoji)):
 			// Keep Claude responses as-is
 			formattedLines = append(formattedLines, line)
 			
diff --git a/cmd/root.go b/cmd/root.go
index dee0482..c611eab 100644
--- a/cmd/root.go
+++ b/cmd/root.go
@@ -132,7 +132,7 @@ func processGitCommit(ctx context.Context, input HookInput, bashInput BashToolIn
 		return fmt.Errorf("could not extract commit hash")
 	}
 
-	// Create notes manager
+	// Create notes manager and load config
 	notesManager := notes.NewNotesManager(input.CWD)
 	cfg := config.LoadNotesConfig(input.CWD)
 	notesManager.SetNotesRef(cfg.NotesRef)
@@ -149,7 +149,7 @@ func processGitCommit(ctx context.Context, input HookInput, bashInput BashToolIn
 	time.Sleep(100 * time.Millisecond)
 	
 	// Extract conversation context since the last commit
-	contextExtractor := conv.NewContextExtractor()
+	contextExtractor := conv.NewContextExtractor(cfg)
 	conversationContext, err := contextExtractor.ExtractContextSince(input.TranscriptPath, input.SessionID, previousCommitTime)
 	if err != nil {
 		return fmt.Errorf("failed to extract conversation context: %w", err)
diff --git a/internal/config/notes.go b/internal/config/notes.go
index bf9e82d..8a7af9b 100644
--- a/internal/config/notes.go
+++ b/internal/config/notes.go
@@ -14,6 +14,8 @@ type NotesConfig struct {
 	IncludeToolOutput bool     `json:"include_tool_output"` // Whether to include tool output in notes
 	NotesRef          string   `json:"notes_ref"`           // Git notes reference name
 	ExcludePatterns   []string `json:"exclude_patterns"`    // Patterns to exclude from notes
+	UserEmoji         string   `json:"user_emoji"`          // Emoji to use for user messages
+	AssistantEmoji    string   `json:"assistant_emoji"`     // Emoji to use for assistant messages
 }
 
 // DefaultNotesConfig returns the default configuration
@@ -32,6 +34,8 @@ func DefaultNotesConfig() *NotesConfig {
 			"api_key",
 			"auth",
 		},
+		UserEmoji:      "👤",
+		AssistantEmoji: "🤖",
 	}
 }
 
@@ -62,6 +66,12 @@ func LoadNotesConfig(projectDir string) *NotesConfig {
 	if config.MaxPrompts <= 0 {
 		config.MaxPrompts = 2
 	}
+	if config.UserEmoji == "" {
+		config.UserEmoji = "👤"
+	}
+	if config.AssistantEmoji == "" {
+		config.AssistantEmoji = "🤖"
+	}
 
 	return &config
 }
diff --git a/internal/context/conversation.go b/internal/context/conversation.go
index e3a9042..9f83da3 100644
--- a/internal/context/conversation.go
+++ b/internal/context/conversation.go
@@ -10,6 +10,8 @@ import (
 	"sort"
 	"strings"
 	"time"
+	
+	"github.com/imjasonh/cnotes/internal/config"
 )
 
 // ConversationContext represents relevant conversation context for a commit
@@ -40,10 +42,11 @@ type ToolInteraction struct {
 type ContextExtractor struct {
 	maxExcerptLength  int
 	sensitivePatterns []*regexp.Regexp
+	config            *config.NotesConfig
 }
 
 // NewContextExtractor creates a new context extractor with default settings
-func NewContextExtractor() *ContextExtractor {
+func NewContextExtractor(cfg *config.NotesConfig) *ContextExtractor {
 	// Patterns to filter out sensitive information
 	sensitivePatterns := []*regexp.Regexp{
 		regexp.MustCompile(`(?i)(password|token|key|secret)[:\s]*[^\s\n]+`),
@@ -52,9 +55,15 @@ func NewContextExtractor() *ContextExtractor {
 		regexp.MustCompile(`[A-Za-z0-9+/]{40,}={0,2}`), // Base64 encoded secrets
 	}
 
+	maxLength := 5000
+	if cfg != nil && cfg.MaxExcerptLength > 0 {
+		maxLength = cfg.MaxExcerptLength
+	}
+
 	return &ContextExtractor{
-		maxExcerptLength:  5000, // 5KB limit for context
+		maxExcerptLength:  maxLength,
 		sensitivePatterns: sensitivePatterns,
+		config:            cfg,
 	}
 }
 
@@ -361,7 +370,11 @@ func (ce *ContextExtractor) CreateExcerpt(context *ConversationContext) string {
 			if len(content) > 200 {
 				content = content[:197] + "..."
 			}
-			line = fmt.Sprintf("User: %s", content)
+			emoji := "👤"
+			if ce.config != nil && ce.config.UserEmoji != "" {
+				emoji = ce.config.UserEmoji
+			}
+			line = fmt.Sprintf("%s User: %s", emoji, content)
 			
 		case "assistant":
 			// Format assistant responses
@@ -369,7 +382,11 @@ func (ce *ContextExtractor) CreateExcerpt(context *ConversationContext) string {
 			if len(content) > 200 {
 				content = content[:197] + "..."
 			}
-			line = fmt.Sprintf("Claude: %s", content)
+			emoji := "🤖"
+			if ce.config != nil && ce.config.AssistantEmoji != "" {
+				emoji = ce.config.AssistantEmoji
+			}
+			line = fmt.Sprintf("%s Claude: %s", emoji, content)
 			
 		case "tool":
 			// Format tool uses