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An obscene gesture is a movement or position of the body, especially of the hands or arms, that is considered exceedingly offensive or vulgar in some particular cultures. Such gestures are often sexually suggestive.
Although "the finger" has been called "the universal sign of disrespect", [1] it is not truly universal. For example, in Japanese Sign Language, when the palm is facing out, it is recognized as the character せ ("se"). Many other gestures are used in addition to, or in lieu of, the finger in various parts of the world to express the same sentiment. In some parts of the world, "the finger" does not have any meaning at all.
In India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, the social circles exposed to the western cultures use the middle finger gesture in the same sense that it is used in those cultures. The same is true for most South Asian countries.
In Portugal, this gesture is also called "Pirete" or "Manguito".
In Russia, the middle finger is used to simply point (usually at the speaker themselves) and to communicate emphasis.
In the Commonwealth of Nations countries (except Canada),[ citation needed ] the V sign as an insult (the middle and index fingers raised, and given with back of the hand towards the recipient) serves a similar purpose to the finger. The V sign with palm face outwards is used to signify victory [2] or as a peace sign. [3]
More commonly in Russian-influenced areas, the dulya (also known as fig sign or shysh). This gesture is most commonly used to refuse giving of aid or to disagree with the target of gesture. Usually it is connected with requests for a financial loan or assistance with performing physical work. The gesture is typically made with the hand and fingers curled and the thumb thrust between the middle and index fingers. This gesture is also used similarly in Indonesia, Turkey, Korea, China, Mongolia, Hungary (called "fityisz"), South Slavic countries (shipak/šipak) and Romania ("ciuciu").
The sign of the horns, or corna in Italian ("horns"), is a gesture with various meanings depending on culture, context, or the placement or movement of the gesture. It is especially common in Italy and the Mediterranean region, where it generally takes on two different meanings depending on context and positioning of the hand. The first, more innocuous usage of the gesture in Italy and the Mediterranean is deployed for apotropaic or superstitious purposes, as a way to ward off bad luck or the "evil eye". This usage of the gesture may also be employed when confronted with unfortunate events or even when such events are mentioned, and it is usually performed with the fingers pointed downward (or simply not directed towards someone) to distinguish the apotropaic usage of the gesture from the obscene usage of the gesture.
The second usage of the gesture, also found in Italy and other Mediterranean and Latin countries (including Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, France, Greece, Portugal, Spain, and Uruguay) [4] [5] [6] [7] is instead obscene, disrespectful, and insulting. Unlike the first usage of the gesture, this obscene usage of the gesture involves pointing the two fingers upward or directing the gesture towards someone and swiveling the hand back and forth. This usage of the gesture implies cuckoldry in the person it is directed towards. The common words for cuckolded in Italian, Greek and Spanish are cornuto, κερατάς (keratas) and cornudo respectively, literally "horned". [8]
In Greece, the five fingers are spread wide and the palm is pushed towards someone in a gesture known as the Moutza. The middle finger is still used though, and it is considered more insulting. Another variation of the middle finger is used, where all the fingers but the middle one are spread wide while moving the hand back and forth in the axis the middle finger creates. In this gesture, the thumb sometimes touches the middle finger. The insult of this is equivalent to the finger.[ citation needed ]
In Iranian culture, a similar gesture is used to represent "Dirt on your head", a verbal insult that is often used, implying that the receiver did something idiotic, or can't do something so easy, or just to humiliate.
In some African and Caribbean countries, a similarly obscene gesture is extending all five digits with the palm facing forward, meaning "you have five fathers" (thus calling someone a bastard). [9]
In Iraqi and Assyrian culture, abruptly thrusting the palm of the hand to someone means they are worthy of shame and are dishonourable.
In former Persia, mainly Iran and Iraq, a gesture involving exposing only the thumb in a vertical orientation—a thumbs up—is used instead of the finger to express roughly the same sentiment – roughly equivalent in meaning to "shove it up your ass/arse," "up yours," or "go fuck yourself". [10]
In some Arab countries, especially Egypt, the middle finger is lowered towards the palm and pointed towards someone, while all other fingers are kept straight. It could be considered the opposite movement of the traditional middle finger gesture, but it serves the same purpose and meaning.[ citation needed ]
In Elizabethan England, this gesture was performed by placing the tip of the thumb behind the front teeth and flicking it forward. It can be interpreted as being equivalent to giving someone the middle finger or challenging to a fight. This version is still in use in some countries. [11]
In William Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet , Capulet's servant Sampson starts a fight by "biting his thumb" at Abram, Montague's servant.
While widespread use of the OK gesture has granted it an international connotation of assent, it also bears negative, vulgar, or offensive meanings in parts of the Middle East and the Mediterranean regions. [12] In contrast to Japan's use of the expression to represent coins and wealth, the gesture's "O" shape stands for "zero" meaning "worth nothing" in France, Belgium, and Tunisia. [13] [14]
In many Mediterranean countries such as Turkey, Tunisia, and Greece, as well as in the Middle East, parts of Germany, and several South American countries, the gesture may be interpreted as a vulgar expression resembling a human anus, either as an insult ("You are an asshole"), or an offensive, homophobic reference to homosexuality and the act of sodomy. In Brazil, it can be synonymous with giving someone the middle finger. [15] [16]
In the Arab world, this sign represents the evil eye, and is used as a curse, sometimes in conjunction with verbal condemnation. [17]
In South Korea, starting around 2021 with the finger pinching conspiracy theory, the pinching finger gesture started to be considered an expression of misandry by the proponents of the conspiracy theory as the gesture is meant to mock to the allegedly small size of Korean men's penises.
Several notable companies and officials have been pressured into formal apologies or other types of responses when the gesture was found in their materials, where it likely appeared unintentionally.
In Western culture, "the finger", or the middle finger is an obscene hand gesture. The gesture communicates moderate to extreme contempt, and is roughly equivalent in meaning to "fuck you", "shove it up your ass/arse", "up yours", or "go fuck yourself". It is performed by showing the back of a hand that has only the middle finger extended upwards, though in some locales, the thumb is extended. Extending the finger is considered a symbol of contempt in several cultures, especially in the Western world. Many cultures use similar gestures to display their disrespect, although others use it to express pointing without intentional disrespect. The gesture is usually used to express contempt but can also be used humorously or playfully.
The V sign is a hand gesture in which the index and middle fingers are raised and parted to make a V shape while the other fingers are clenched. It has various meanings, depending on the circumstances and how it is presented.
The middle finger, long finger, second finger, third finger, toll finger or tall man is the third digit of the human hand, located between the index finger and the ring finger. It is typically the longest digit. In anatomy, it is also called the third finger, digitus medius, digitus tertius or digitus III.
Hook 'em Horns is the chant and hand signal of The University of Texas at Austin. Students, alumni, and fans of the university employ a greeting consisting of the phrase "Hook 'em" or "Hook 'em Horns" to show school pride.
Chinese number gestures are a method to signify the natural numbers one through ten using one hand. This method may have been developed to bridge the many varieties of Chinese—for example, the numbers 4 and 10 are hard to distinguish in some dialects. Some suggest that it was also used by business people during bargaining when they wish for more privacy in a public place. These gestures are fully integrated into Chinese Sign Language.
The OK gesture or OK sign or ring gesture is performed by joining the thumb and index finger in a circle, and holding the other fingers straight or relaxed away from the palm. Commonly used by scuba divers, it signifies "I am OK" or "Are you OK?" when underwater. In most English-speaking countries it denotes approval, agreement, and that all is well or "okay". In other contexts or cultures, similar gestures may have different meanings including those that are negative, offensive, financial, numerical, devotional, political, or purely linguistic.
The sign of the horns is a hand gesture with a variety of meanings and uses in various cultures. It is formed by extending the index and little fingers while holding the middle and ring fingers down with the thumb.
A thumb signal, usually described as a thumbs-up or thumbs-down, is a common hand gesture achieved by a closed fist held with the thumb extended upward or downward, respectively. The thumbs-up gesture is associated with positivity, approval, achievement, satisfaction and solidarity, while the thumbs-down gesture is associated with concern, disapproval, dissatisfaction, rejection and failure.
A taunt is a battle cry, sarcastic remark, gesture, or insult intended to demoralize or antagonize the recipient. Taunting can exist as a form of social competition to gain control of the target's cultural capital. In sociological theory, the control of the three social capitals is used to produce an advantage in the social hierarchy, to enforce one's position in relation to others. This can also be used as a tactic to gain advantage of their opponent's irrational reaction. Taunting is committed by either directly or indirectly encouraging others to taunt the target. The target may give a response in kind to maintain status, as in fighting words and trash-talk.
A mountza or moutza also called faskeloma is the most traditional gesture of insult among Greeks. It consists of extending and spreading all fingers of the hand and presenting the palm towards the face of the person to be insulted with a forward motion.
To cross one's fingers is a hand gesture commonly used to wish for luck. Early Christians used the gesture to implore the protection of the Holy Cross. The gesture is referred to by the common expressions "cross your fingers", "keep your fingers crossed", or just "fingers crossed".
American Sign Language (ASL), the sign language used by the deaf community throughout most of North America, has a rich vocabulary of terms, which include profanity. Within deaf culture, there is a distinction drawn between signs used to curse versus signs that are used to describe sexual acts. In usage, signs to describe detailed sexual behavior are highly taboo due to their graphic nature. As for the signs themselves, some signs do overlap, but they may also vary according to usage. For example, the sign for "shit" when used to curse is different from the sign for "shit" when used to describe the bodily function or the fecal matter.
Etiquette in Latin America varies by country and by region within a given country.
Finger-counting, also known as dactylonomy, is the act of counting using one's fingers. There are multiple different systems used across time and between cultures, though many of these have seen a decline in use because of the spread of Arabic numerals.
A bras d'honneur, also known as an Iberian slap, forearm jerk, Italian salute, or Kozakiewicz's gesture, is an obscene gesture that communicates moderate to extreme contempt, and is roughly equivalent in meaning to "fuck you" or "up yours", having the same meaning as giving the finger. To make the gesture, an arm is bent in an L-shape, with the fist pointing upwards; the other hand then grips or slaps the biceps of the bent arm as it is emphatically raised to a vertical position.
The fig sign is a mildly obscene gesture that uses a thumb wedged in between two fingers. The gesture is most commonly used to ward off the evil eye, insult someone, or deny a request. It has been used at least since the Roman Age in Southern Europe and parts of the Mediterranean region, including in Turkish culture. Some countries in Asia, Slavic cultures and South Africa use it too. It is used playfully in Northwestern Europe and North Africa, countries such as the US, Canada, Australia, Libya, Tunisia and Czech Republic to pretend to take the nose off a child.
Waving is a nonverbal communication gesture that consists of the movement of the hand and/or entire arm that people commonly use to greet each other, but it can also be used to say goodbye, acknowledge another's presence, call for silence, or deny someone. The wave gesture is an essential element of human language.
A beckoning sign is a type of gesture intended to beckon or call-over someone or something. It is usually translated into "come here". This form of nonverbal communication varies from culture to culture, each having a relatively unique method of indicating invitation or enticement. Generally, this move is not recommended as it may imply contempt for the individual being beckoned.
Hand gestures are used in regions of Italy and in the Italian language as a form of nonverbal communication and expression. The gestures within the Italian lexicon are dominated by movements of the hands and fingers, but may also include movements of facial features such as eyebrows, the mouth and the cheeks. Theories persist as to the exact origin of hand gestures as a method of communication in Italy, however it is likely that they emerged through necessity as a universal, non-verbal method of communicating across different Italian local languages and dialects. Despite the majority of today's Italian population speaking Italian, hand gestures have persisted as a method of expression to accompany verbal speech in many regions of Italy.
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