Between 10-12% of people on earth are “lefties.” Women are 更多 likely to be right-handed than men 由 about 4 percentage points.i
August 13th is “Left-Hander’s Day.” Launched in 1992, this yearly event celebrates left-handedness and raises awareness of the difficulties and frustrations left-handers experience every 日 in a world designed for right-handers.c
At various times in history, left-handedness has been seen as many things: a nasty habit, a mark of the devil, a sign of neurosis, rebellion, criminality, and homosexuality. It has also been seen as a trait indicating creativity and musical abilities.b
Some scholars note that left-handers may be one of the last unorganized minorities in society because they have no collective power and no real sense of common identity. Additionally, left-handers are often discriminated against 由 social, educational, and religious institutions. Social customs and even language set the left-hander apart as “different” and even “bad.”b
The word left is from the Anglo-Saxon lyft, meaning weak 或者 broken
Many sources claim that left-handers may die as many as nine years earlier than right-handers.b
The word left in English comes from the Anglo-Saxon word lyft, which means weak 或者 broken. The 牛津, 牛津大学 English Dictionary defines left-handed as meaning crippled, defective, awkward, clumsy, inapt, characterized 由 underhanded dealings, ambiguous, doubtful, questionable, ill-omened, inauspicious, and illegitimate.b
Phrases in English suggest a negative view of left-handedness. For example, a “left-handed complement” is actually an insult. A “left-handed marriage” is not a marriage but an adulterous sexual liaison, as in a “left-handed honeymoon with someone else’s husband.” A “left-handed wife” is actually a mistress.b
Research has shown a link between trauma during gestation 或者 during birth with an increased chance of being left-handed.b
Tests conducted 由 St. Lawrence 大学 in New York found that there were 更多 left-handed people with IQs over 140 than right-handed people. Famous left-handed intellectuals include Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, and Benjamin Franklin.b
Mothers who are over 40 at the time of a child’s birth are 128% 更多 likely to have a left-handed baby than a woman in her 20s.b
In reference to a person’s sex life, a “left-hander” is a homosexual.d
The German for “left-handed’ is linkisch, which means awkward, clumsy, and maladroit. In Italian, the word is mancino, which is derived from “crooked” 或者 “maimed” (mancus) and is also used to mean deceitful 或者 dishonest. In Russian, to be called a left-hander (levja) is a term of insult.d
In Latin, the word for left is sinister, related to the noun sinistrum. Ambisinister means “clumsy on both sides.”b
In the Talmud, the Chief of Satans 或者 Prince of Demons is named Samael, which is associated with the Hebrew word for left side, se’mol. The 天使 Michael sits on God’s right-hand side, while Samael is on his left-hand side. This attribution of evil to the left and good to the right appears in various forms throughout the world.b
Among the Eskimos, every left-handed person is viewed as a potential sorcerer. In Morocco, left-handers are considered to be a s’ga, a word that means either a devil 或者 a cursed person.d
The term 《嗜血法医》 means "right"
Even the word “dexterity” shows a right-handed bias. The term 《嗜血法医》 means “right” and refers to being “right-handed” on both sides.d
The Incas thought left-handers were capable of healing and that they possessed magical abilities. The North American Zuni tribe believed left-handedness signified good luck.d
Herbert 胡佛 is believed to be the first left-handed president, though James 加菲猫 could write Greek with the left hand and Latin with the right.d
Research indicates that left-handers are 更多 likely to become alcoholics, schizophrenic, delinquent, and dyslexic. They are also 更多 likely to have Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, 或者 mental disabilities. Scholars note that despite these maladies, left-handers have survived because they are traditionally successful in combat.b
The Devil is typically portrayed as being left-handed
Many artistic representations of the devil 显示 him to be left-handed.b
The Boston Strangler, Jack the Ripper, and Osama Bin Laden were lefties.b
In witchcraft texts in medieval Europe, it was the left hand that was used to harm 或者 curse another person. To affect a curse, witches were instructed to silently touch the recipient with the left hand, which would convey the curse. Additionally, the devil supposedly gives the gathering a benediction with the left hand, as opposed to the right-handed blessing of the Christian church. He would also baptize 或者 anoint with his left hand.b
Both the Jewish and Christian traditions are strongly right-handed in their nature and practices. For Catholics, Anglicans, Episcopalians, and other denominations, the priest must present the communion wafer with the right hand, and the communicant accepts it with the right hand. All benedictions must be made with the right hand, and a priest symbolizes the “strong right hand of God.” b
Medieval Jewish philosopher Maimonides (A.D. 1135-1204) listed 100 blemishes a Jewish priest could not have, and being left-handed was one of them.b
In Scotland there is a saying that describes an unlucky person: “He must have been baptized 由 a left-handed priest.”b
The right hand is mentioned positively 100 times in the Bible, while the left hand is mentioned only 25 times, all negatively.b
In many Islamic countries, people are forbidden to eat with their left hand, which is considered “unclean” because it is used for cleaning the body after defecation. Additionally, “public display” 或者 use of the left hand is against the law in some Islamic countries, including Saudi Arabia.d
The ratio of right-to left-pawed 狗 或者 猫 is roughly equal
Although approximately 90% of all humans are right-handed, cats, rats, and mice that 显示 handedness seem to be equally 分裂, 拆分 between right- and left-pawedness.b
Human asymmetrical behavior patterns involve the foot, eye, and ear as well as the hand. In each case, humans 显示 the same rightward bias they 显示 toward handedness.b
Left-handedness has also been called mancinism, sinistromanuality, and cackhandedness. Other colloquialisms for left-handedness include skivvy-handed, scrummy-handed, kaggy-fisted, cawk-fisted, gibble-fisted, southpaw, cunny-and ballock-handed.b
According to tradition, an itchy left hand indicates 你 will lose money. An itchy right hand indicates 你 will receive money.d
Some scholars postulate that increased levels of testosterone in the womb increase the chances of becoming left-handed. This may explain the correlation that seems to exist between left-handedness and some immune disorders, as testosterone has been linked to immune disorders.b
Studies have suggested that left-handers are 更多 talented in spatial awareness, math, and architecture. Right-handers tend to be 更多 talented verbally.b
The gene LRRTM1 is a strong contributing factor for left-handedness. Scientists discovered the gene during a study of dyslexic children and believe it is inherited from the father.f
Left-handedness runs in families. Lefties in the British royal family include the 皇后乐队 Mother, 皇后乐队 Elizabeth II, Prince Charles, and Prince William.b
Studies 显示 that those who have autism are 更多 likely to be left-handed.a
Many people who are left-handed draw figures that face to the right.i
Left-handers are 更多 likely to be dyslexic and to stutter.e
One in four Apollo astronauts were left-handers.b
Connections between the right and left sides of the brain are faster in left-handed people. This means information is transferred faster, making left-handers 更多 efficient in dealing with multiple stimuli and using both sides of the brain 更多 easily.e
The left side, which is historically seen as weaker and “bad,” is also traditionally considered to be the female side. However, current scientific data suggests that men are 更多 likely to be left-handed than women.b
Ultrasounds 显示 that in the womb, 90% of 婴儿 appear to favor the right thumb, which corresponds to population breakdowns of right-handers and left-handers.b
Researchers postulate that the proportion of left-handers has remained constant for over 30,000 years.b
Studies suggest premature 婴儿 are 更多 likely to be left-handed. Additionally, infants with low Apgar scores at birth are 更多 likely to be left-handed than children who have higher Apgar scores.b
Juniata College in Huntington, Pennsylvania awards up to $1,500 in academic scholarships to students who have 最佳, 返回页首 academic records and who are left-handed.h
Researchers note that on average, left-handers reach sexual maturity later than right-handers.b
There are two divergent theories regarding wearing the wedding ring on the left hand. One theory is that it started with the ancient Egyptians, who believed that despite the left hand’s supposed flaws, placing the ring on this hand brought it nearer to the heart. Another theory attributes the origin to the Greeks and Romans, who wore the rings to ward off evil associated with the left hand.d
About 30 million people in the United States are left-handed.i
婴儿 can 显示 early signs of handedness
When placed on their tummies, right-handed 婴儿 tend to turn their heads to the right. Left-handed 婴儿 usually turn their heads to the left 或者 they don’t 显示 any preference.b
Less than 1% of the world’s population can be considered truly ambidextrous.b
Research suggests that left-handers are slightly 更多 prone to allergies and asthma than right-handers are.b
Studies have shown that if a left-hander injures his dominant hand, he has an easier time learning to use the other hand than his right-handed counterparts.d
In a 最近的 experiment, left-handers who watched an eight-minute clip from the film Silence of the Lambs showed 更多 fear than right-handers. Scientists believe that this may be because the right side of the brain is dominant in lefties and is 更多 involved in fear responses.e
According to the Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, the brains of left-handers process emotions differently than those of right-handers and are 更多 susceptible to negative emotions, such as anger.b
Some scientists have suggested that left-handers were originally in the womb with a twin that did not survive, 或者 a “Vanishing Twin.”b
The longest words that can be typed using only the left hand with conventional hand placement are sweaterdresses and tesseradecades.

Famous Left-Handers

Tom Cruise    
Leonardo da Vinci    
Albert Einstein
Benjamin Franklin    
Whoopi Goldberg    
Cary Grant
Paul McCartney    
Michelangelo    
Martina Navratilova
Julia Roberts    
Oprah Winfrey    
Babe Ruth
Fidel Castro    
Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin
Lord Baden-Powell
Henry Ford    
Helen Keller    
松鸦, 杰伊, 杰伊 · Leno
Bart Simpson    
Dan Ackroyd    
Tim Allen
Charlie Chaplin    
Robert DeNiro    
Marilyn Monroe
Jerry Seinfeld    
Lewis Carroll    
Mark Twain
H.G. Wells    
Celine Dion    
Jimi Hendrix
Paul Simon    
Oliver North    
Yogi Berra
“Shoeless” Joe Jackson    
Steve Young    
Larry Bird
Alexander the Great    Julius Caesar    
Marie Curie
Thomas Jefferson    
Colin Powell    
Gandhi
Charlemagne    
Horatio Nelson    Ramses II
Billy the Kid (debated)    
John Dillinger    
Bob Dylan
David Letterman    
Mozart    
Prokofiev
Rachmaninoff    
Beethoven    
Ravel
Schumann    
Paganini    
Goethe
Aristotle    
Nietzsche    Kafka
Hans P.
Christian Anderson    
费雷德 Astaire    
Richard Simmons
Greta Garbo    
Judy Garland    
Drew Barrymore
Sylvester Stallone    
Dick 面包车, 范 Dyke    
Robert Redford
Brad Pitt    
Angelina Jolie    
John McEnroe
O.J. Simpson    
Dorothy Hamill    
Henry Ford
Bill Gates    
John D Rockefeller    
Albert Schweitzer