Yes, the virtual terminals on Linux (and BSD) systems are emulators. They emulate actual, physical, terminals. You are incorrect in your inference of what the

Yes, the virtual terminals on Linux (and BSD) systems are emulators. They emulate actual, physical, terminals. You are incorrect in your inference of what the notion of emulation means, furthermore. Although not in general true of terminal emulators, unfortunately, other emulators are often superior experiences to the originals.