The History Of Giving Someone The Middle Finger
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 21 ก.ย. 2024
- Let's set the scene. You're livid, you want to scream at someone. But for some reason, you can't speak. What gesture do you give them? That's right - the good ol' middle finger comes immediately to mind, right? The middle finger has been known as a way to display anger for a very long time - going all the way back to ancient Greece. In fact, it's "one of the most ancient insult gestures known,” according to anthropologist Desmond Morris.
#middlefinger #bodylanguage #weirdhistory
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I always thought the non-verbal equivalent to throwing a brick thru someone's window was throwing a brick thru someone's window
But you can't say anything
Yeah they have to spruce up their language to make these videos more accessible to the masses, but to the weird people like you and me who just like weird history for what it is, it can feel silly
Right?
Yeah that part was dumb
I just took it as their way of requesting an extra comment for the algorithm
I love that this can go back to ancient times. Humans never change.
Took American Sign Language in College, first thing we learned is that the middle finger is a sign and yes it means exactly what we thought it did
I'm taking that class now...
It's the opposite of 8
🤟
🤣😂🤣
You had to go to college for that?
@@nitromartini1422 there are at least 20 people going to a Taylor Swift class, at least no one took the SATs not just the celebrity kids mahalo 🤟🏻🤙🏻
I wouldn't call it learning as much as it was affirming what most of us already knew
I think the term "give them the bird" might be more recent than the 1960s. I remember a Warner Bros cartoon called "Tail of Two Kitties" where two Abbot and Costello type cats are trying to get Tweety (before he really was Tweety that is). When one is on the ladder he's telling the Costello cat "Give me the bird, give me the bird" to which the Costello cat goes "If they Hayes Office would let me, I'd give him the bird."
The Hayes comment refers to the Hayes code, a set of rules for movies that severely limited creativity in classic film.
@@seanmessick9330 That and curse words too.
I love the old Popeye as Alibaba cartoon, all the old 1s like that!
The Bob Dole "I have trouble in my right arm" thing was because he lost most of the use of that arm as a direct result of injuries he recieved fighting the Nazis in Italy during WWII. He was actually paralyzed from the neck down for a time, but worked his physical therapy so hard that he was able to recover as much as he was. He never made any kind of big deal about it afterwards.
And then he made boner pill commericals.
That sounds like pain incarnate flowing through his nerves, he's super human to even just have his right arm not work anymore.
That is why he always carried a pen in his hand, not only to his disability, but as a reminder of the war. How do I know? I knew Bob Dole. Just one of the greatest generation in history.
@@youknowme8578 but have you heard about the bird???
Dole was paralyzed from the neck up.
The bird, bird…bird is the word.
The Trashmen
Shut up Peter. Lol
The thing is the archer story involves giving the reverse victory sign . Not giving the middle finger
The "reverse victory sign" is the original middle finger gesture. They use both fingers.
@@taylorlibby7642 No it isn't
@@promontorium Ok. I leaned long ago not to argue with snide know-nothings, so ok whatever you say.
In Britain, we use "two fingers" because archers use "two fingers" and the story of the Battle of Agincourt and defiance is true. When the French captured British archers they would cut their two fingers off, so it became a symbol of defiance to show that you had your two fingers. This is well documented. He should do more thorough research before he claims something from another people's culture is not true. This symbol of War became a symbol of peace when you turn to the round in a 1960s. The single middle finger have become intertwined.
Glad some Europeans here 😅
The only times I flip the bird; 1) When someone is steaming my clams. 2) When someone is baking my beans.
Valid😂😂😂
Anybody ever grind your gears?
Numbskull
All I know is I used to see my grandmother do it all the time, so I started doing it too. They thought it was funny...until I flipped off the pastor for taking the piece of chicken I wanted when he came to dinner at our house (which he did like every other Sunday because his wife couldn't cook🤣🤣🤣). My grandmother's face dropped and my grandfather just spit out the water he was drinking and laughed his ass off. I was about 3/4. I remember it because it was hilarious after everything settled down.
that's actually really funny 😭😭😭
Stick it to the man
My father told me that the local Catholic priest used to invite himself to drop by for dinner uninvited during the Great Depression when the family was starving. He and a buddy put a stinky dead skunk on the intake manifold of the priest's Model T Ford and it stank the car up permanently.
The priest never showed up again.
You...are..hilariously funny!
😂😂😂
Is it just me or did the ancient Greeks have a lot of time on their hands?
That’s why their society ended up collapsing . Same thing in America currently
No. The rock group Styx had too much time on their hands. Lol
@@kennethpowers82982 rush has a lot of time to float around because of time stand still
When they weren't advancing their society intellectually you mean😂😂😂😅
I'm British. The story of Agincourt is true. The French threatened to cut TWO fingers off. That's why the archers showed TWO fingers up to the French, not one!
And that’s why its still used as an insult in the uk today
I thought that story had been debunked?
thank you! i'm not british, but had heard this as the origin of the V sign.
Putting "I'm British" before a comment doesn't make it true.
Archers were not ransomable. Prisoners would be killed out of hand.
Ah I see. What a classic photo of The Man In Black. Iconic photo of nothing more than Rebellious disrespect. Great video as always. Thanks a lot!!
Nelson Rockefeller was shot the bird by protesters, so he shot it back. When questioned about his response to the protester not being ‘Vice Presidential’, he said “It not very respectful to shoot the bird at the Vice President of the United States”. I liked ever since.
B-b-b-bird bird bird, bird is the word, B-b-b-bird bird bird, bird is the word!
That was the very first thing that went through my mind!
@@monkeygraborange ikr?
In 1986 a USN Tomcat pilot used this gesture to “communicate” with the crew of a Russian fighter, while flying inverted. His RIO took Polaroids of the incident.
Maverick?!.. 🤔 🤣
@@ericmarin6454 Maybe, but it’s classified.
🤣
“Greetings!”
Just keeping up international relations
In England we use two fingers and thats because you use two fingers to draw a bow thats what they flipped they flipped the French
I think it's funny that you gotta censor a finger
Censorship on crack
TH-cam are sticklers about it unfortunately :/
You should censor it.... it's vulgar
@@garycarpenter2980 cope harder
Fed up of being treated like a five year old by TH-cam.
This one little dog tried to attack me and my big dog and after it got tossed around a bit, it barked some curse words at us and ran off.
The other day I saw that same dog behind it’s gate and so I flipped him off. I SWEAR he started barking more angrily after I flipped him off.
We lived in Iran during the 70s. They use the thumb the same as our pilots OK sign. This led to much hilarity because the pilots could not remember not to do it. The Iranians commented that the middle finger was larger and a symbol of American efficiency.
After going to see "Any Which Way but Loose" as an impressionable 7 year old, next day I went to my school classroom giving everybody the "monkey finger", because everyone in the theater laughed when the monkey did it! My 1st grade teacher was not impressed, lol!
Me too!!
I grew up with a dad who'd upset my mom by taking me to all of Clint's movies when I was a kid...ah, the good ole days!
Sweet tale
Taking a 7-year-old to see "Any Which Way but Loose"? Somebody needed to call Children's Services! 😂
@@carlosrobbins9178 right turn Clyde!
I would also like to know the origin of the gesture where the right hand hits the left upper arm and the elbow is bent. In Spanish it's called "corte de mangas" and means the same as flipping the bird. Another great gesture is the Italian "fangool" swipe under the chin with the hand. Geez it's hard to put these gestures in writing! 😅
I used to see people do that arm gesture in the 80s in America, but I actually haven't seen it in quite a while.
I think the first gesture is the Super Flip of the Bird. Lol
I always thought of it as "stick it up your a**"
Danny Thomas did it on his Make Room For Daddy tv show. He would also go”EH” !
Galileo Galileo Galileo. Part of the song By Queen?
FUN FACT: The "high five" wasn't invented till 1977. It was invented during a baseball game dusty baker invented it!
That is fun. I remember transitioning from the ‘gimme five’ to the high five.
I read it was invented by American sailors { in the navy } in Japan after world war 2 .
😯🤔♑️✍️🇦🇺🇳🇴
Yet another reason for me to love Johnny Cash
unless there is some nasty reputation for the prison it's a reason for me losing some respect. the vast majority of people in prisons are there because they fucked up. unless the warden was particularly noted as a dick it just makes Cash look pathetic. "sure I'll entertain a bunch of criminals but, the law abiding man who runs the facillity keeping them from harming others can get fucked."
again unless theres something notable about the warden or prison at the time, it just makes Cash look bad.
@@TGPDrunknHick exactly. People who dislike authority figures simply because they are authority figures drive me nuts. There's no way these people would want to live in a world that didn't have those authority figures because it would be warlord chaos. It comes across as extremely immature and petulant.
I saw that picture on the back of a news magazine and I said I didn't think he knew what that was
I like the other kind of “cash”🤑 does that count?
@@jasondashney How About “FJB”?
Weird History making the videos that need to be made. Thank you for your service.
The rumor was that the French cut off the two fingers not the middle finger of archers. In Britian and her colonies, the V sign is the equivalent to the middle finger for them and not so much the middle.
It's absolutely ridiculous that they are blurring a damn finger through this while thing. It shows how fucked our society is talk about murder or torture all you want on the channel but please anything but showing me a finger. I can't handle it.
It’s was the 2 fingers the archers gave to the French to show they had both their bow fingers and that is still around and used mostly (that I’ve seen anyway) in the UK. I just read a book on Agincourt. So this is a different gesture but I’m pretty sure it’s very close to the bird.
Was about to say this👍
Totally true, seems to be an American decided to change reality to fit their desired narrative .. any competent bowman can still drawn a bow string without a one of the two main fingers.
As a child of the '50s/'60s I was taught to use the 2-finger salute to mean the same thing as the middle-finger but it wasn't till the'70s I ever learned of the American version.
He clearly states that wasn't it.
It's been around since ancient Greece
1:55
@@j.stonehouse5004 no, we say its from the two fingers insult, which americans mistake for the "peace" sign or just saying "two". he claims in the video we say its for the middle finger, which i have never heard anyone claim its from that, only ever the 2 finger insult.
@@j.stonehouse5004 the video is talking about the middle finger gesture. Not the 2 fingers/reverse peace sign gesture
As a Aussie my self some of us use a middle finger to say G'day to a friend and only to a friend LOL
Yeah, we do that in Texas, too. I think that’s a GenX thing.
@@negativeindustrial LOL that's funny and strange all ways thought it was a Australian thing haha never thought it be a GenX
You know, in honor of the bird, wouldn't it be something if the dislike button was briefly turned into a middle finger?
Especially for some of the comments here.
This is such a great channel
Stupid censorship. Having to blur and cover up the middle finger in a video about the subject is just weak!!!
Thank you weird history for this!!!!!! I have been wondering where did this middle finger gester come from ever since I was a kid in the 90s🤣🤣🤣 I'm glad to be part of this channel!!!!!!!!
Man, that's something. A colorful history of the finger. Read about this from Wikipedia during my freetime. Heard about the North Korean story from Unknown5. Had a cut on my finger when I was washing the dishes and I showed my sister and her husband. They thought I was giving them the finger. But I was just bleeding from a cut.
Oh my goodness another one of Zachariah’s classic tales, please don’t forget to regale us with more anecdotes and bring forth raucous laughter
@@olsmellyknuckles9653 is this a joke?
I should be asleep, but I found this channel and now I can’t sleep, but these videos are great.
Some years back my wife gave me a T-shirt with that Johnny Cash picture on it. Glad to finally know why he looked so pissed.
When our family migrated to Australia from Britain in 1960, the "thumbs up" was considered an extremely rude gesture here. Usually given with an upward, jerking motion as in "up yer bum!". In Britain, it was always the two- finger salute, back of the hand outwards and usually with an upward sweeping motion of the arm. I don't recall seeing much of the raised middle finger in either the UK or Aus until well into the 70s, when US TV shows started to dominate.
From the Looney Tune cartoon,, Babbitt And Catsello, as the two feline antagonists are trying to catch Tweety:
Babbitt: Give me the bird, come on give me the bird!
Catsello: If only that Mr. Hays would let me, I'd give him the bird alright.
When I was 7, I remember asking my school bus driver what sticking your middle up meant. She said it means "nothing". So while riding my bike around the neighborhood later in the day, I flipped off everyone on the street. I got paddled pretty hard that day. Couldn't sit for a week.
As the owner of a small business I really look forward to Thanksgiving when I traditionally give each of my employees a turkey. I love that each year I get to give a handful of people the bird and in a twist they all thank me for it. :)
Numbskull
@@simpleman5688 😋
A+ video!
It is just crazy how a tradition like that has been around for so long, I understand why so many people use it!
I'm an Australian boomer. I don't recall the middle finger gesture until way after I was an adult, mid eighties perhaps. For my generation, schooled during the seventies, it was "the forks"- the reverse of the victory sign, first two fingers upright, other two folded down, palm facing the person doing it. It did have the same meaning though!
The 'bird' seems more emphatic and coarse for some reason.
I think the forks is the more popular version in Britain and Commonwealth countries,, It's in a Monty Python episode even, the one with the navy expedition to a lake inside a house. One of them in drag (and a swimsuit) does it to Graham Chapman. 😅
I've never really seen it outside Britain, Australia, etc.
Hey I am from Iraq and never heard of anyone objecting to the OK sign ! The Iraqi version of the flip bird is the open palm with only the ring finger bent upwards and moving back and forth . But this gesture is considered so rude and disgusting one would never want to be caught with it on camera .
awesome
The first time I understood the meaning as a Costa Rican, was when I saw the movie of the Beverly Hillbillies lol
The Brits show two fingers....the index and the middlle...palm upwards....it means 'up yours....' I think that's what happened at Agincourt actually....BUT they do use the middlle as well....helps to have options.
I have noticed every culture has a gesture meaning, "That's crazy", never mind them. In Turkey the twenty somethings really enjoyed showing me how they deal with silly rules imposed they just raise the hand and swivel it. Americans point a finger to the head then slowly stir it in a circle meaning, that guys thinking is turned around. They loved playing with gestures with me and it helped our language barrier. They really got confused when I said, that's cool. "Do you know what cool means". Of course we know what cool means let's go inside if you're cold. Let's do a segment on how to say that's crazy and that's cool in different cultures.
That gesture from Turkey? We used to do that alot when we were kids. Btw, I'm a Black woman from the US.
The fact you didn't use the finger from the end of Sometimes a Great Notion is the most interesting fact.
Tfw I read about it's ancient origins long before I found the video.
So the Romans and Greeks were fans of bird flipping, as well. Glad to see that's one tradition that never changed.
You should do a video about the history of cuss words in general
For the record, Bob Dole had a wicked sense of humour and the reason he had trouble with his right arm was that he was a disabled veteran of World War Two.
6:59 he wasn't actually flipping the bird, there is another photo from a different angle that shows he had a few fingers up.
Fantastic video keep it up your doing amazing job
I want to know about the history of "yo momma" jokes
✊
This channel is the best I swear 😂❤️
Throwing a brick through someone’s window is already non-verbal.
My driver's ed class motto was "Keep the bird in the cage." It was taken from a video on the dangers of road rage.
Yo! Weird history, Thanks for being Weird man. ❤️ 😉 I dig this stuff.
Did the ancient Romans have cars?? Because that's when I usually fly the bird...
Here is a real Weird History that most people are not aware of.
The so called German "s.w.a.z.t.i.k.a symbol" is actually a Chinese character , defined by Kangxi Dictionary , published in 1716, as "synonym of myriad. It is used mostly in Buddhist classic texts", by extension, the word later evolved to represent eternity and Buddhism. The symbol has a long history in Europe reaching back to antiquity.
The American Indians use that symbol too. It must have developed in parallel with the old world, because the new world and old world didn’t have contact until relatively recently.
@@leonardticsay8046 - Well, I just learned something new. I never realized this. Thanks for that
The word for it is “Wan.”
I saw that in Korea I believe. If I am not mistaken the symbol you speak of is a swastika backwards
Ive also seen a swastika in Hindu cultural signs.
Love the narration !
I've been watching for years this guys voice is legendary!
Martin Truex Jr gave his engine the finger after power steering issues last night in the Bristol night race
Chase Elliott gave Kyle Busch the finger after getting crashed out at Darlington 2 years ago
Kyle Busch gave a NASCAR Official the double bird while serving a 1 lap penalty resulting in an additional 2 lap penalty at Texas 12 years ago
It’s good to know where the gesture comes from! It’s our family tradition to take at least one group photo with everyone flipping the bird 😂 now if asked, I know the origin!
Everybody's heard about the bird....now.
My favorite finger is the one in the middle. It's the way I return my disrespect to the assholes who offend me. And it's one of my favorite ways to piss off those people. And I think it's hilarious!
I heard there was a lot of origins of this.
This is necessary
Excellent 🤩
something I didn't know I needed🤣🤣
Very interesting and informative!
Did… did you guys hear the word? Pa pa pa pa pa ooo mow mow mow pa pa ooo mow mow mow…. *dances feverishly*
The bird is the word!
Weird history frisked me at the airport and called me punk.
People in the comments being proved wrong still clutching to British propaganda “OI IT WAS TWO FINGAS NOT DA MIDDO ONE INNIT!?”
When I was a kid, we were told that the middle finger was a way to say you hated God.
The sign is still useful, though
As a Brit, I don't think I saw anyone use the middle finger until about 30ish years ago. It was seen as an "Americanism" and pointless as we had the two-fingered salute. You have to turn the back of the hand to the recipient, or it means victory!
The French/English archer thing is from the two finger V sign insult.
Hats off to Weird History for finding so many ways to blur out the ginger.
Excellent picture of the Grateful Dead, especially right after dropping Widespread. I see you. 👀 much love weird history.
*Grandpa wants to know who invented "THE SHOCKER" - two in the pink and one in the stink!*
"Shoulda just called him Mitch"...LOL
Stop signs in Pennsylvania were yellow with Black letters up until 1960.
I know because I started driving in 1964.
In the 60's, the switch was on. Some old yellow signs lingered until the 70's.
I have a tshirt of that thumbnail. it gets compliments everytime I wear it.
You should do an episode on how Helen Keller was able to learn to talk
Speaking as a Brit I don’t know where you got your info from, but Brits traditionally use *2* fingers for that sign, not 1 (in a reverse peace fingers position).
It should be explained that Bob Dole said he had problems with his right arm because he lose the use of it fighting a battle in Italy in WW2
TH-cam's censoring has gotten ridiculous!
I took a lot of shrooms one time and a friend had a huge Johnny Cash giving the middle finger poster in his living room. As it all hit me he proceeded to come out of the poster to do what idk bc I ran around the house 😂
Thanks for the idea, I'm totally gonna use this as a trap in a D&D campaign. A party member tries to get a closer look at this weird portrait then WHAM! The guy in the painting jumps out and tackles them to the ground, whaling on them relentlessly
@@scottromig7633 always a good time 😂
Trudeau Sr at protestors: Flips the bird from a train.
Trudeau Jr at protestors:... nothing. He conveniently developed Covid and went into isolation
😂 throwing a brick through somebody’s window is also “nonverbal”.
there's two things I know how to use well sarcasm and the middle finger.
It was never in a movie until Dennis Hopper used it in Easy Rider.
I always love delving into the history of “curse” words and such because it is so silly that a word or gesture can be considered “bad” independent of intent. But, oh how Christian’s and other moralists disagree. I say that as a Christian.
I prefer the two fingered salute we use in the UK sometimes accompanied with the verbal insult,"Get it up you!"😂
The Pueblo crew is legendary!
Makes a video about the middle finger, proceeds to censor any image of the middle finger..
Thank you for this video! 😀🌺
The Archer origin is not related to the 'bird' but to the British two finger gesture
You guys missed the Ed Sullivan/Jackie Mason middle finger feud that got Mason banned from the show.
In much of Europe, it is the backwards V with the first two fingers. In "Le Mans" when McQueen flips two fingers, it isn't about victory.
Agincore, they used the two fingers for the v for victory sign, but backwards. Just ask Winston Churchill. Specifically, you needed two fingers to pull the bow back. Captured archers would have those two fingers cut off.