Left Handed Origins, Meanings and Famous Lefties
What It Means to be a Leftie – Unique, Creative and Resourceful
Nov 12, 2009
The word “left” comes from the Latin word for “sinister,” which explains some of the superstitions attached to anything on the left side. Until recent years, many teachers and parents forced left-handed children to use the right hand instead, which resulted in sloppy handwriting and lack of coordination. However, times have changed, and left-handed folks often consider their handedness a bragging right.
Right or Left Connotations
The word “right” is often meant to convey correctness and appropriateness. When students give a correct answer, they are right. When an employee insists on equal pay for equal work, he is demanding his rights.
Conversely, if a person is not included in something, she is considered "left out." "Right" often has a positive connotation, while "left" often has a negative connotation.
Left-Handed Facts
Some interesting facts about left-handedness include:
- Approximately 10 percent of the population is left-handed.
- According to ABCNews.go.com, humans are joined by other species in left-handedness being in the minority, including among monkeys, toads and some types of fish.
- There are more left-handed people with IQs over 140 when compared to right-handed people, according to a St. Lawrence University test conducted by Alan Searleman.
- Two right-handed parents have a lower than 10 percent chance of having a left-handed child, as stated by BeingLeftHanded.com.
- One right-handed parent and one left-handed parent have about a 25 percent chance of having a left-handed child.
- If both parents are left-handed, their chance of having a left-handed child is about 50 percent.
- There are more left-handed boys than girls.
- "Handedness" generally arises by the age of four years.
- Using the QWERTY keyboard, there are more words that can be typed by using only the left hand than there are with the right hand.
- Most people interested in handedness are either left-handed or have a left-handed child.
Left-Handed Items
Many right-handed products are frustrating to lefties. When a left-handed person writes in a spiral notebook, the metal can be irritating to the hand. Right-handed desks provide an armrest, so lefties’ arms often tire out before the end of the day.
Mugs, pens and pencils have graphics and writing that is either upside down or faces away from the left-handed person. Most of these issues don’t pose real problems, but there are some tools that make life easier for a left-handed person. Some of these include:
- Scissors
- Electric screwdrivers
- Left-handed steak knives
- Left-handed can openers
- Left-handed notebooks
- Left-handed golf clubs
- Left-handed guitars
Famous Lefties
Many left-handed people have made names for themselves in their fields.
Among the sports lefties are Babe Ruth, Arnold Palmer, Larry Bird, Pele, Mark Spitz, John McEnroe, Jimmy Connors, Martina Navratilova and Ivan Lendl.
Movie and TV star lefties include Cary Grant, Steve McQueen, W.C. Fields, Charlie Chaplin, Fred Astaire, Robert Redford, Robert DeNiro, Tom Cruise, Sylvester Stalone, Jim Carrey, Bruce Willis, Greta Garbo, Betty Grable, Judy Garland, Marilyn Monroe, Angelina Jolie, Julia Roberts, Emma Thompson, Demi Moore and Nicole Kidman.
Some famous left-handed musicians include Jimi Hendrix, Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney, David Bowie, Sting, Phil Collins, George Michael, Eminem, Celine Dion, Paul Simon, Ringo Star.
Other famous lefties include J. Edgar Hoover, Bill Gates, Mark Twain, Lewis Carroll, Prince Charles, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Leonardo DaVinci, Michelangelo, Picasso, Mozart, Beethoven, Winston Churchill, Joan of Arc, Marie Curie and Albert Einstein.
There were some villainous lefties, including Jack the Ripper, the Boston Strangler and Billy the Kid.
According to the WashingtonPost.com, 6 of the past 12 presidents have been left-handed, including Harry Truman, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.
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