Good morning! ☀️🌸😎 Do you also do these hand gestures? What do they mean to you? 👍 T-SHIRT UPDATE!!! ✨Yay✨ We now have TWO new summer t-shirt designs: "German Summer" and "Biergarten Bunch" 😍👕👚 You can check them out here: teespring.com/stores/wantedadventure
Wanted Adventure Well, I think the knocking is not just in the University a common figure. or gesture. (can one use the term figure? :D) I know this knocking even from the school after a presentation and in general everywhere where you want to honor somebody.
Wanted Adventure crossing the fingers means in Germany, that you are not telling the truth. We normaly cross our fingers behind the back and then telling someone: of course I will clean up the kitchen. Somtimes someone will say, of they dont' believe you; can I see your fingers?!
I think the knocking is usually done, when you actually have a surface to knock on in front of you. University lecture halls obviously have that, so does the local pub. It's called "akademisches Klopfen", btw (academic knocking). Its backstory is quite interesting. I always figured that, as students have a very healthy....thirst (:P), that it went from the lecture halls to the pubs, where it simply got picked up by non-students as well.
When someone enters a full room at a party or so. He or she often Knocks 2-3 times on each table to greet all the people arround instead of greeting everyone one by one
Being a German lawyer I would like to inform our US friends that insults are a punishable crime in Germany. If you repeatedly point your finger to your forehead ("den Vogel zeigen" = you're an idiot) while looking at another driver or even a cop you might get charged with a misdemeanor ("Beleidigung" = insult or verbal assault).
Céli Petit Geldstrafe von 750 € für "Vogel zeigen": www.bussgeld-info.de/beleidigung-im-strassenverkehr/ . Die Höhe der Strafe ist aber abhängig vom Einkommen des Verurteilten.
When i was a kid, fingercrossing meant that that you are lying. So for example two kids one has two toys. The other asks: "Can I have one of your toys?", *cross fingers* "Yes...", "Oh cool", *shows fingers* "Haha I was lying!" *runs away*
it is like a spell that you can lie without punishment. (from god i guess) so kids make it in the believe, that lying is okay if they cross the fingers
Also bei mir im Umkreis (ich weiß nicht ob das überall so ist) klopft man auch auf den Tisch um nicht jedem hallo sagen zu müssen. Einmal 'Hallo' sagen und auf den Tisch klopfen und jeder fühlt sich angesprochen :)
Way back when, we were told that doing this gesture while driving could get us fined (Warnungsgeld) as such rude gestures from one driver to another were not allowed... Also, as I understand it from family tradition, the finger tapping the forehead - or even pointing to it - is the sign for saying that the other person has fecal matter in their skull, i.e. "du Scheisskopf!"
1. You can get fined since it's an insult. 2. The gesture comes from the superstition that stupid people got a bird in their head instead of a brain, or something like that, not shit.
In my region, pointing the pointer finger to the head is not the whole thing, you normally tap more often than just once and the fingers crossing, at least also in my region, means that you lie. For example you have to swear that you´re saying the truth, you have to show the other one your hands so that they can see you´re not crossing your fingers, which then means you´re saying the truth. I´m sorry if this was not understandable...
nah in Poland we do the same and sometimes we would take it to the extreme and cross our toes or any other variation (but ofc more as a joke than usual sign)
That's the way I know it.^^ And I also only know the "knocking on wood" thing either as an applause or as "Good luck!", sometimes in combination with "Toi toi toi".
manchmal ist das Klopfen auf den Tisch auch eine Begrüßung. es sitzen 10 Leute an einem Tisch, die man kennt aber nicht unbedingt befreundet ist. statt nun jedem einzeln die Hand zu geben zur Begrüßung kloppft man auf den Tisch
Enra Mummi und ich kenne das aus der Pfalz. Da wo ich herkomme oder eigentlich in der ganzen Pfalz macht man das so mit dem Klopfen. Zum Begrüßen und auch zum Verabschieden.
ich kenne das auch aus RLP und NRW. besonders merkwürdig finde ich es immer, wenn es von der bemerkung begleitet wird: "ich mach mal ..." (und dann eben das klopfen).
One gesture that confused me when I first got to Germany was pulling down a lower eyelid with the index finger. I don't know how widespread this is, but it seems to mean that the person doing it can see through some attempt at deception or a fallacy of some sort.
That's like out irony gesture, at least that's how we use it here. If you say something like "oh of course I stay at home tonight" and you pull your lower eyelid that would mean that you definitely won't stay at home tonight and probably do something you said you wouldn't.
Pointing or tipping the finger to the forehead has the meaning "Du hast ja nen Vogel!"(You have a Bird.). As if a Bird would live in your head. Wiping the hand in front of your face means "Du hast ja ne Scheibe!" or "Du hast ja n Brett vorm Kopp!"(You got a board in front of your head.). Crossing fingers behind the back is a sign to lie. To think the opposite of what you are saying. Knocking on a table could also be a greeting. Especially in bars or clubs. Thats what i know so far. ;-)
In China people drum 2 fingers (twice) on the table after they get served tea: The story goes that a Chinese Emperor was visiting a tea shop incognito wanted to thank the server for the excellent tea - but as an emperor - he cannot bow to anyone, so he resorted to this special hand gestures. People found it so elegant, that they emulated it and it became an established hand gesture.
The "Daumen drücken" (good luck) I do with the thumb inside the fist. Perhaps it is a regional thing. The "time out" gesture, by forming a T-shape with both hands (fingers closed, straight hands) is very common, too. Having your hand in front of your throat, wrist in a 90° angle and fingers pointing towards you is a very blunt gesture to shut someone up. Usually this is shown together with silently saying "nein" or "stopp". Pulling down the lower lid of your eye with the index finger and slightly tilting your head means "you can't fool me, I noticed the lie".
I've never seen someone actually press their thumbs (either way) ; I only know the phrase. And I have no idea what you're talking about with the "shut up"-gesture - I just can't picture what you're describing 0o
The thumbs are supposed to be held inside the fist,because original it was believed that you could bind bad-luck-demons to your thumb and by holding your thumb immobilize them.
And then there's the humorous knocking against one's own or someone else's head for wishing luck.... dreimal aufs Holz klopfen. The joke is that you're also saying you or the other person whose head you're knocking on is a "Holzkopf", a stupid person.
In the U.S., we knock on wood for good luck or to ward off bad luck (and it doesn't work if you knock on any other material). As a joke, people will sometimes knock on their heads to suggest it is made of wood (like a ventriloquist's dummy's head ... so they're suggesting they're a "dummy" or dumb/stupid). :)
In my country crossing your fingers (the American way) like that, it means you're lying to someone. It's mostly in a joking matter. When you say something like "I promise I didn't hide this thing from you" and your fingers are crossed behind your back then it means you're not telling the truth. Some people also cross their legs. You could get later slapped when you do that, so I wouldn't recommend it ;P It's annoying as hell.
Ocean's 8 is coming in 2018 Yeahh it's the same here in Bavaria and i guess in entire Germany, i think they just forgot the meaning of that in the Video ;-)
The loud knocks on the table in a certain scenario like a bar or a discussion round is the equivalent to the saying "hear hear!" It's a gesture of honor or acknowledgement
More of a "Mattscheibe" I guess. A "Brett vorm Kopf" is more like that you just didn't get something, while this gesture does mean that you are an idiot, like "nicht mehr alle Tassen im Schrank haben".
regarding the knocking / clapping difference: I have the feeling that clapping is more a form of applause for a performance, artistical or musical in nature, while knocking on your table is a form of appreciation for an everyday task, like a lecture at uni, or a presentation at your job. So, even in university, if there's a band performing, people clap instead of knocking
I love how even though spoken German has been lost in my family, a lot of German mannerisms have carried on. I recognized several of these and do the hand-face one frequently. lol I love my German heritage!
The thing about knocking on the table is that today it's seen as more “formal“ than normal handclapping. So if you're in a meeting or at uni/senior class you would normally knock. Meanwhile the knocking originates from giving someone applause and being able to hold something (e.g. a glass) in your hand. So it went from the “Stammtisch“ to the uni because like that you can show your prof your appreciation while still writing. If you think about it, when using both of your hands you put more effort into your applause than with knocking which could mean more appreciation for the prof or whoever. But since knocking is used in formal situations it's seen as the “better“ version of clapping. Only standing ovations can top that.
One thing I find amusing is that tapping your index finger to your temple is called "jemandem den Vogel zeigen" whereas flipping someone the bird in English is of course a slightly different gesture... which is understood the same here in Germany.
Another thing that knocking on the table is used for is when you take your leave when you're at a bar with friends or something. It's loud, everyone's talking, people are probably spread out over multiple tables. Saying goodbye to everyone individually is infeasible and annoying, but just yelling "Goodbye" really loudly is rude. So, when you grab your stuff, have already stood up and are ready to leave, you knock on the table (usually twice) which usually gets everyone's attention and then just give a short Goodbye. If it's especially loud and you're especially close-knit, you may knock on each of your friends' tables, but usually just on the one that you actually sat at.
I'm from Aachen. We have our own gesture. If we are somewhere else, we greet other people from Aachen with the little Finger (Danger: that can be misunderstood from the distance). It is called Klenkes. The source is the needle production which was important in Aachen long time ago. The worker, usually kids, where sorting and counting the needles with the little finger on a table, this made the little finger stiff and you could identify people from needle production by that.
Crossing your fingers is sometimes used to indicate you're close to someone, e.g. you'd say something like 'We're like that' and then make the gesture and people will know that you and person X are close friends or know each other really well.
Hi Dana, I’m Italian so I have say we know hand gestures for sure! Have a nice day!
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crossing the fingers is called a Hexenkreuz and is meant to wish someone to fail or to cancel a vow/promise if you make that gesture unseen while you are giving that vow.
In Italy, we call the point finger "indice" (literally "pointer"); we count also like German people, so I think it's a European thing to count starting with your thumb. As for clapping, we can whistle, but it could be misunderstood because in the past the whistle meant disapproval (now it is positive most of the time). We don't knock the wood anyway. To say "good luck" we cross the fingers too and we don't do the thumb thing.
We literally call that finger pointing finger in German. In English it’s also the “index finger”, but they might have lost the connection to “indicate”. And I disagree with the ordering part of the video, would still show a thumb for the number one, but raising the arm with just the index finger or all five fingers to get attention. We do whistling here only for very enthusiastic approval, so that’s a very intense form here. We would spitting over somebody’s shoulder be a very intense form of wishing somebody good luck. But due to being intense, those are rare to witness.
You can also knock if you are joining a group of friends and say hello to them. It's easier and not that formal than greeting everyone directly. It's more used an festivals when all of them are in a talk with each other. With that you raise their attention, so they greet back and can continue. And you can join someone or, if you were just passing through, go on.
i also know that when you arrive on a family event, where you meet people you know but are not very close with, plus they are sitting together at one table and it would take to much time to greet everyone itself, you knock at the head of the table and wave to the whole table to say "Hello" to everyone.
To the knocking thing: You can also do it when you come late to a meeting with your friends. Instead of greeting everyone by shaking hands you can just knock on the table which means something like "hello to everyone on this table". The combination would be knocking and saying hello. Crossing fingers can mean that you lie. So you stand in front of a person and you are telling a lie then you can cross your fingers behind your back to indicate that this is a lie.
With the knocking: I think applauding by knocking on the table is for formal occasions where clapping would be considered a little... loud, rude and tacky. Knocking on a pub table for me means saying bye to the whole table without shaking everyone's hand individually, which makes sense for a huge crowd and/or a seating arrangement where getting to everyone might be difficult.
When you leave a room with a lot of people at a table or enter you can knock on the table two times to say goodbye/hello to the whole table (but mostly you also say smth like "goodbye everyone" too)
gret video! It is always a pleasure to see where the little differences are! I have alway so much fun with your videos! Thanks for that! Now I will see what the Frickelbude does. I love DIY! have a great weekend!
My father was in university in Holland and had a professor whose was presenting a thesis or paper about electric bells. Some engineering students rigged up bells and buzzers and then attended the lecture and rang their bells instead of knocking to insult him, because they hated him.
If someone came into a room and can not say hello to everyone he knocks on a table and the other people wave a hello xD This is how my family and friends say hello if they are too late and to much people are in a room :'D
in germany you also knock on the table 2-3 times if you say goodbye to a group of people (like in a bar or crowed/loud place). that way you don't have to shake hands with everybody.
Pointing your index finger at your temple means "du hast einen Vogel" and the closest expression in English to that could be "you are bats in the bell tree".
In Belgium if you want to order a glass of beer u can put up your the little finger or pinkie . This is the hand gesture for a 'pintje' . This hand gesture is used in clubs or bars where the music is to loud. This ensures that the bartender knows what you want even tho he maybe can't hear you.
I don't know how you guys have witnessed this, but knocking on the table is done in a corporate environment, too. After a lecture or fruitful meeting, it's the sign that everything's wrapped up and people thank the lecturer or the person who leads a meeting by knocking on the table. I think this is an agreement of some sorts, so that not everybody in the end has to thank the leading person or lecturer personally. At the same time, it signals unison, so that no single person needs further discussion or arguing. Clapping is something you'd do in a much bigger event, like a rally, or speeches at bigger sites.
In the Netherlands when you point your finger on the sides of your head, you don't really tap, it's more like twisting a little bit. It also means clever.
We sometimes do also knock on the table if you join or leave a bigger group of people that are having drinks together. This is just a polite but short way to say hello or goodbye to the whole table without having to hug everybody or shake hands. We often use this with a short sentence like "leute, ich packs" meaning "guys, I gotta go", so we can leave the group without interrupting conversations or having too much attention. in south western Germany (Baden) we do that pretty often
What I really enjoy is when Indian colleagues agree by shaking the upper part of their head left and right. It looks far more like approval than our heavy nod. What I think in comparison is "yey, I so totally agree that my head is dancing" to "yey... my head falls off."
The first thing about Crossing fingers is, that it is a hidden move to tell later "I didn't really mean it, it wasn't the truth." Or children then say "I crossed my finger, so my promise is not valid... I do not really know how to explain this in english... But i hope some will understand what i mean... Great video by the way :-)
knocking the table is also common in clubs and other voluntary groups. For example, in the fire brigade, you'd knock after someone gave a theoretical lesson on a topic. This is quite similar to the University-settings, as basically everyone is thanking/honoring the teacher for their time.
I was told that the knocking instead of applause at the university comes from the times when everyone was writing their notes with pen and paper. Since students would still hold their pen in one hand, they would knock on the table with their other hand to signal applause.
@Dana - the waving of the hand in front of the face means "you are completely blank" or "you have no clue what's going on", it's like wiping a whiteboard clean :)
Mr. German Man is right about the University knocking applause thing. In the auditoriums, it's common for students to knock the table with their non-dominant hand for applause or approval, because they are using their dominant hand to take notes and clapping would force them to interrupt their writing and possibly miss some information.
Actually, people had been accustomed to pressing the index finger's nail into the thumb's skin, decades ago, in order to avoid focus on a worse pain, like when the dentist finishes off with you. My mother and grandmother told me about this quite often. I still use this technique. :-D
Am Stammtisch kann das Klopfen auch einfach ein "hallo" oder "auf Wiedersehen" sein, wenn es eine größere Gruppe ist und man nicht jeden einzeln begrüßen kann/möchte oder aber auch nicht jeden kennt der dort sitzt. Ansonsten gibt es auch noch das "toi, toi, toi" 3x auf Holz(!) klopfen. Das bedeutet so viel wie "hoffentlich geht das gut" oder "es möge gelingen". Die Herkunft davon ist auf Wikipedia ganz gut erklärt. Gekreuzte Finger bedeuten hier eher das man schummelt oder lügt. Aber die Bedeutung von Dana ist hier auch nicht unbekannt und wird im Kontext meist verstanden. Das "wedeln" vor dem Gesicht bedeutet sowas wie "der hat sie doch nicht mehr alle" und deutet sowas etwie einen Scheibenwischer beim Auto an. Die Person sollte also mal für klare Sicht sorgen. Dann gibt es noch etwas zwischen dem "Fingertippen" und dem "vor dem Gesicht wedeln", das ist wenn man mit dem Zeigefinger zum Schläfenbereich hin eine Kreisform macht. Das bedeutet "der hat eine Schraube locker" und die Drehung deutet das Gewinde an bzw dass die Schraube mal wieder festgezogen werden sollte.
I use the thumb to indicate 1 too. But then my forearm is directed upwards and not horizontal as in the thumbsup. This works well in Germany, Norway and Sweden. So far there never has been any confusion when I ordered a beer.
there is a japanese hand gesture like holding the side of your hand towards your face and rutteling it using the elbow... it can mean "can you do it for me please" or "thank you so much" or "no i do not wanna do it cut it out" or also "can i go through please" it obviously depends on the situation and i used to do it 1000 times when i used to live in tokyo
The second one is called "Scheibenwischer" - The way you move your hand in front of your face. Knock instead of clap origin: You need just one hand to knock. So you can knock and write or hold your beer at the same time. If you cross your fingers while making a promise, you don't need to make what you promised. When I was child I always had to check, if there is any fingers crossed.
When I and actually all the people i know "push my thumbs" i put the thumb *in* the other fingers. And the old meaning of that is, to "keep" bad ghosts and goblins in you to stop them of getting out and make the others fale. That's how far I know it :D
Pointing your finger to your head (repeatedly) does mean, as some people in the comments have already indicated, "Du hast einen Vogel" meaning that you think the other person is a crazy person. That's probably why I also tend to whistle when I wave my hand in front of my face, i.e. imitating a bird's chirp.
Strangely enough in the Netherands when you point your finger at your forehead it means 'you are stupid' but when you point it at the side of your head it means 'you are clever'. Thank you most kindly.
The knocking on a table is also a form of greeting. If you come to a gathering of multiple people you know you might just knock a view times on the table when you enter instead of greeting everyone individually. In the same way it is sometimes done if someone leaves. But that might just be regional thing^^
Pointing your pointer finger on your forehead means "you're crazy"/"bei dir piept's" and pointing that finger on the side of your gead means "ah great idea, haven't think of that".
Ich bin grad völlig verwirrt davon, Elisa hier zu sehen. Damit hab ich so gar nicht gerechnet. Habe sie glaub ich schon abonniert seit sie bei "Was geht ab!?" dabei war :)
I don't know if it's only us, but in my school we knock on the table to applause because it's actually not as loud as clapping our hands. So it's more like honoring them without disturbing the other classes. The teachers could get really angry if we're clapping.
3:25 This was used in Inglorious Bastards to "out" the spy.They were in a bar, and the spy ordered three glasses, using the English/American form, not the German. It was subtle and clever, and frankly you don't expect subtle in a Terrintino movie (though clever IS expected).
I'm British, so we do have some gestures in common, but I've never seen anyone point to their head to boast about their smart ideas. Also, we have peace signs as well, but it only counts as a peace sign if your palm is facing away from you. If you do it the other way round, it's an obscenity - exactly the same as the middle finger.
You can use those crossed fingers in Germany, too. But it means something different. When you promise something and cross your fingers, you didn't really promise. But I think it's mostly used by children.💕🙈
Pointing the finger to the side of your head can also mean: "Think about it again" or "Think before you talk". To call someone an idiot, just point the finger in the middle of your forehead, between your (rised) eyebows.
I know the knocking on the table also to greet a huge group of people (or to say goodbye) if you don't want to say hi or goodbye to everyone, for example at a gathering/party
Maybe I can clarify the "finger pointing to your head" thing for you: When you want to gesture to someone "You are stupid" you repeatedly tap your forehead with your fingertip with your finger pointing into your head. When you want to show the "I am smart" gesture, you tap your temple, but you finger is straight and is pointing upwards.
In the UK we tend to count both ways, but I'm pretty sure the German way is normally used more by children. Another gesture we have is doing the peace sign but backwards, with the palm of your hand facing yourself. It's a form of swearing that means f off so if in the UK, check the direction of your peace sign 😋
Hannah Griffiths I think children do it the German way more often because it might be the way we all used to do it over here, but American gestures have slowly been imported through media. (Not that that's a bad thing, but globalisation is happening all the time.) Just the way that crossed fingers used to have the definite meaning that you're lying (over here in Germany, at least), but I think if you were to use them as a "Good luck!" gesture, nowadays people would understand.
The backwards peace sign means victory in many countries. It is only offensive in the UK and possibly France as it is related to a battle fought between these two countries.
No, it's likely to result with a very offended person in Australia too given our English roots. except for the knocking and face wave we seem to be more German in our hand use.
Oh my God. It all makes sense now. When I was young, I would watch the sequel of the little mermaid and her daughter would have a big birthday party. So right before she goes down the stairs to her dancing partner, the mother would wish her luck and cross her fingers. All the time I've wondered why Ariel is so mean to her own daughter. ( because crossing your finger means you lie in Germany)
Applause, outside of a cinema/theater/stage, is often used in an ironic way. Like when I do something minor and brag about it and people applaud they kind of imply that they're not THAT impressed with my deed as I am. Thus the knocking is meant to ensure to say "We mean it" whereas applaus in these situations could be mistaken for mockery. In the university it's simply more convenient - it makes a lot of noise without much effort and you can still operate your smartphone with the free hand. ^^
knocking on the table.. we had a few guest students and a professor from the US at our university. At the end of the first session with them our poor American fellows flinched and looked heavily shocked when the whole room started knocking on the tables.
Knocking instead of clapping requires a desk, so, yeah I only know it from classroom/conference room situations. And knocking on the table in social gatherings I never saw as a thanks but as a greeting to a larger group sitting at said table.
Elisa is so cute, and I tried to look at her content. Its looks good, but sadly my german is no good. Nice collaboration though and her site is very good. Well done girls; good energy and lots of smiles; very key element IMO
Not a German, but we have some gestures taken from them - finger to head gesture for us is not just holdig finger, you tap it to hed a bit (like" knoc, knoc, is ayone home?" - because for studpid there is nobody home (mening head)) . We also count from thumb, and "hold a tumb" for good luck. And you cross fingers whn you lie (you hide your hands from person you lie to).
The finger to the forehead is definitely "i have an idea" if the main movement is away from the head (in sign language it's even the official gesture, think "look at what came out of my head!"). If you poke the head it's like "is there anybody in there?" -> slight brain damage.
Clapping is something you do for a nice action e.g in a musical or something. Knocking on the table is if you did something good with your brain like a presentation.
the *fingertotheforhead* movement often goes along with the saying "du hast einen Vogel!". Also you tap the finger on the middle of the forhead. I've never seen anyone simply point to the side of the head.
that second gesture (waving the hand in front of the face) is kinda similar to something I (an American) would do if i was talking to someone and they weren't really paying attention like "earth to Dana, are you listening to me?" *waves hand in face*
The pointy finger at the head means: "Is there anything going on in there??" The wave in front of the face is similar to trying to get somebodys attention when they are daydreaming or elsewhere in their thoughts: "Hello, wake up! Pay attention! What were you thinking?!"
Good morning! ☀️🌸😎 Do you also do these hand gestures? What do they mean to you? 👍
T-SHIRT UPDATE!!! ✨Yay✨ We now have TWO new summer t-shirt designs: "German Summer" and "Biergarten Bunch" 😍👕👚 You can check them out here: teespring.com/stores/wantedadventure
Wanted Adventure
Well, I think the knocking is not just in the University a common figure. or gesture. (can one use the term figure? :D)
I know this knocking even from the school after a presentation and in general everywhere where you want to honor somebody.
Wanted Adventure crossing the fingers means in Germany, that you are not telling the truth. We normaly cross our fingers behind the back and then telling someone: of course I will clean up the kitchen. Somtimes someone will say, of they dont' believe you; can I see your fingers?!
I think the knocking is usually done, when you actually have a surface to knock on in front of you. University lecture halls obviously have that, so does the local pub. It's called "akademisches Klopfen", btw (academic knocking). Its backstory is quite interesting.
I always figured that, as students have a very healthy....thirst (:P), that it went from the lecture halls to the pubs, where it simply got picked up by non-students as well.
Wanted Adventure we did the knocking on the table instead of applause at my Gymnasium (the school not the gym) as well
When someone enters a full room at a party or so. He or she often Knocks 2-3 times on each table to greet all the people arround instead of greeting everyone one by one
Being a German lawyer I would like to inform our US friends that insults are a punishable crime in Germany. If you repeatedly point your finger to your forehead ("den Vogel zeigen" = you're an idiot) while looking at another driver or even a cop you might get charged with a misdemeanor ("Beleidigung" = insult or verbal assault).
ohh thats interesting. nice to know. thank you.
van03de wurde das nicht wieder abgeschafft oder war das nur der Mittelfinger den man wieder zeigen darf?
Céli Petit Geldstrafe von 750 € für "Vogel zeigen": www.bussgeld-info.de/beleidigung-im-strassenverkehr/ . Die Höhe der Strafe ist aber abhängig vom Einkommen des Verurteilten.
Most non-police will just ignore your rude gestures in traffic, though.
Wait, really???
When i was a kid, fingercrossing meant that that you are lying. So for example two kids one has two toys. The other asks: "Can I have one of your toys?", *cross fingers* "Yes...", "Oh cool", *shows fingers* "Haha I was lying!" *runs away*
Yes!
it is like a spell that you can lie without punishment. (from god i guess)
so kids make it in the believe, that lying is okay if they cross the fingers
That's what I was thinking of. My brother and I did it very often.
Jep, I know this, too.
It has nothing to do with God, it's more like: You saw I wasn't serious/ I was lying, you can't blame me afterwards though you might feel betrayed.
Also bei mir im Umkreis (ich weiß nicht ob das überall so ist) klopft man auch auf den Tisch um nicht jedem hallo sagen zu müssen.
Einmal 'Hallo' sagen und auf den Tisch klopfen und jeder fühlt sich angesprochen :)
jup, hallo und natürlich auch um tschüß zu sagen
Das ist bei uns in Franken so üblich. Würde mich interessieren, wo das sonst noch überall der Brauch ist.
tobulax also ich lebe in NRW und hier ist es auch ziemlich gängig :)
Can't decide which name I want to have In Berlin auch :)
Genau, anstatt jedem die Hand zu schütteln/umarmen. Das wird auch nicht als unhöflich empfunden
You don't point the finger. You touch the spot repeatedly.
Right?
Way back when, we were told that doing this gesture while driving could get us fined (Warnungsgeld) as such rude gestures from one driver to another were not allowed...
Also, as I understand it from family tradition, the finger tapping the forehead - or even pointing to it - is the sign for saying that the other person has fecal matter in their skull, i.e. "du Scheisskopf!"
1. You can get fined since it's an insult.
2. The gesture comes from the superstition that stupid people got a bird in their head instead of a brain, or something like that, not shit.
Therefor it's called "Jemanden den Vogel zeigen"
to show someone the bird
Yep, it means 'Du hast nen Vogel' - You've got a bird ;) ... and means as much as you're crazy
In my region, pointing the pointer finger to the head is not the whole thing, you normally tap more often than just once and the fingers crossing, at least also in my region, means that you lie. For example you have to swear that you´re saying the truth, you have to show the other one your hands so that they can see you´re not crossing your fingers, which then means you´re saying the truth. I´m sorry if this was not understandable...
I actually don´t know the legs crossed thing...
nah in Poland we do the same and sometimes we would take it to the extreme and cross our toes or any other variation (but ofc more as a joke than usual sign)
in america kids also do that while crossing there fingers
That's the way I know it.^^ And I also only know the "knocking on wood" thing either as an applause or as "Good luck!", sometimes in combination with "Toi toi toi".
sounds like a imaginary land
manchmal ist das Klopfen auf den Tisch auch eine Begrüßung. es sitzen 10 Leute an einem Tisch, die man kennt aber nicht unbedingt befreundet ist. statt nun jedem einzeln die Hand zu geben zur Begrüßung kloppft man auf den Tisch
Woher kommst du? Hier in Hessen habe ich das noch nie gesehen.
ich bin aus Schleswig-Holstein - kenne aber sogar 2 Hessen, die das auch machen. ob die das erst hier gelernt haben kann natürlich auch sein
Enra Mummi und ich kenne das aus der Pfalz. Da wo ich herkomme oder eigentlich in der ganzen Pfalz macht man das so mit dem Klopfen. Zum Begrüßen und auch zum Verabschieden.
ich kenne das auch aus RLP und NRW. besonders merkwürdig finde ich es immer, wenn es von der bemerkung begleitet wird: "ich mach mal ..." (und dann eben das klopfen).
ja genau... ich mach mal so ;-)
One gesture that confused me when I first got to Germany was pulling down a lower eyelid with the index finger. I don't know how widespread this is, but it seems to mean that the person doing it can see through some attempt at deception or a fallacy of some sort.
That's like out irony gesture, at least that's how we use it here.
If you say something like "oh of course I stay at home tonight" and you pull your lower eyelid that would mean that you definitely won't stay at home tonight and probably do something you said you wouldn't.
Oh! And I thought it meant "you can't fool me!" Thanks for the info.
So my guess wasn't entirely wide of the mark, after all. Thanks, that's quite reassuring.
in italy that means you've been smart
I know this one. It usually is accompanied by a request to find the submarine "Kannst du das U-Boot sehen?"
Pointing or tipping the finger to the forehead has the meaning "Du hast ja nen Vogel!"(You have a Bird.). As if a Bird would live in your head. Wiping the hand in front of your face means "Du hast ja ne Scheibe!" or "Du hast ja n Brett vorm Kopp!"(You got a board in front of your head.). Crossing fingers behind the back is a sign to lie. To think the opposite of what you are saying. Knocking on a table could also be a greeting. Especially in bars or clubs. Thats what i know so far. ;-)
In China people drum 2 fingers (twice) on the table after they get served tea: The story goes that a Chinese Emperor was visiting a tea shop incognito wanted to thank the server for the excellent tea - but as an emperor - he cannot bow to anyone, so he resorted to this special hand gestures. People found it so elegant, that they emulated it and it became an established hand gesture.
The "Daumen drücken" (good luck) I do with the thumb inside the fist. Perhaps it is a regional thing. The "time out" gesture, by forming a T-shape with both hands (fingers closed, straight hands) is very common, too. Having your hand in front of your throat, wrist in a 90° angle and fingers pointing towards you is a very blunt gesture to shut someone up. Usually this is shown together with silently saying "nein" or "stopp".
Pulling down the lower lid of your eye with the index finger and slightly tilting your head means "you can't fool me, I noticed the lie".
I've never seen someone actually press their thumbs (either way) ; I only know the phrase.
And I have no idea what you're talking about with the "shut up"-gesture - I just can't picture what you're describing 0o
Like the "I'll kill you"-gesture, but just repeatedly and not meant that way
The thumbs are supposed to be held inside the fist,because original it was believed that you could bind bad-luck-demons to your thumb and by holding your thumb immobilize them.
I'm a German too and I only know "Daumen drücken" ...
You can always knock if you want to wish luck or he has a big task you knock. Just google "auf Holz klopfen".
And then there's the humorous knocking against one's own or someone else's head for wishing luck.... dreimal aufs Holz klopfen. The joke is that you're also saying you or the other person whose head you're knocking on is a "Holzkopf", a stupid person.
In the U.S., we knock on wood for good luck or to ward off bad luck (and it doesn't work if you knock on any other material). As a joke, people will sometimes knock on their heads to suggest it is made of wood (like a ventriloquist's dummy's head ... so they're suggesting they're a "dummy" or dumb/stupid). :)
Not in my region , everyone would look at you and you maybe you even get the finger :P
xzonia1 it's the same in germany :)
If you put one of the crossed finger signs behind your back this means you are lying in Germany 👏
Wionas Weekly same in USA
In my country crossing your fingers (the American way) like that, it means you're lying to someone. It's mostly in a joking matter.
When you say something like "I promise I didn't hide this thing from you" and your fingers are crossed behind your back then it means you're not telling the truth. Some people also cross their legs.
You could get later slapped when you do that, so I wouldn't recommend it ;P It's annoying as hell.
Ocean's 8 is coming in 2018 Yeahh it's the same here in Bavaria and i guess in entire Germany, i think they just forgot the meaning of that in the Video ;-)
Ocean's 8 is coming in 2018 in the USA, crossing your fingers can mean you are lying or it can be for good luck.
Yes that's the same in America too. Kids especially use it this way. It just depends on the context to know which meaning it has here.
Macht Spass, von euch beiden zu lernen. So schade, dass es den Frickelbude Kanal nicht mehr gibt !
The loud knocks on the table in a certain scenario like a bar or a discussion round is the equivalent to the saying "hear hear!" It's a gesture of honor or acknowledgement
I think you missed the most important one: The good old middle finger. Means the same in both Germany and the US I think.
To me , the hand gesture in front of face is referring to: Du hast wohl ein Brett vor dem Kopf
Yeh and the pointing on the head is refering to: "Du hast doch einen Vogel." :D
More of a "Mattscheibe" I guess. A "Brett vorm Kopf" is more like that you just didn't get something, while this gesture does mean that you are an idiot, like "nicht mehr alle Tassen im Schrank haben".
Man scheuert mit der Hand im Gesicht und drückt damit "du bist doch bescheuert" aus.
Its called "Scheibenwischer" like at the car, coming from "Du hast wohl ne Scheibe" which means, you are stupid/crazy.
regarding the knocking / clapping difference: I have the feeling that clapping is more a form of applause for a performance, artistical or musical in nature, while knocking on your table is a form of appreciation for an everyday task, like a lecture at uni, or a presentation at your job. So, even in university, if there's a band performing, people clap instead of knocking
I love how even though spoken German has been lost in my family, a lot of German mannerisms have carried on. I recognized several of these and do the hand-face one frequently. lol I love my German heritage!
Jen S. Muh heritage
Knockin on table is also done if you join a group and dont want to say "hello" to everybody. Same holds for saying "bye".
The thing about knocking on the table is that today it's seen as more “formal“ than normal handclapping. So if you're in a meeting or at uni/senior class you would normally knock. Meanwhile the knocking originates from giving someone applause and being able to hold something (e.g. a glass) in your hand. So it went from the “Stammtisch“ to the uni because like that you can show your prof your appreciation while still writing.
If you think about it, when using both of your hands you put more effort into your applause than with knocking which could mean more appreciation for the prof or whoever. But since knocking is used in formal situations it's seen as the “better“ version of clapping. Only standing ovations can top that.
One thing I find amusing is that tapping your index finger to your temple is called "jemandem den Vogel zeigen" whereas flipping someone the bird in English is of course a slightly different gesture... which is understood the same here in Germany.
I really had so much fun while filming :D Never thought about all these different gestures before. It's such an intuitive thing
Another thing that knocking on the table is used for is when you take your leave when you're at a bar with friends or something. It's loud, everyone's talking, people are probably spread out over multiple tables. Saying goodbye to everyone individually is infeasible and annoying, but just yelling "Goodbye" really loudly is rude.
So, when you grab your stuff, have already stood up and are ready to leave, you knock on the table (usually twice) which usually gets everyone's attention and then just give a short Goodbye. If it's especially loud and you're especially close-knit, you may knock on each of your friends' tables, but usually just on the one that you actually sat at.
I'm from Aachen. We have our own gesture. If we are somewhere else, we greet other people from Aachen with the little Finger (Danger: that can be misunderstood from the distance). It is called Klenkes.
The source is the needle production which was important in Aachen long time ago. The worker, usually kids, where sorting and counting the needles with the little finger on a table, this made the little finger stiff and you could identify people from needle production by that.
I watch too many TH-cam videos. I want to click the 'Like' button when appreciating someone .. in the real world.
I'm gesturing so much there's always fresh air for the people around me. ;)
Crossing your fingers is sometimes used to indicate you're close to someone, e.g. you'd say something like 'We're like that' and then make the gesture and people will know that you and person X are close friends or know each other really well.
Amazing. I've lived in Germany for 10 years, I've perfectly adapted the "waving hand in front of face" gesture and I forgot it was a german thing :P
Hi Dana,
I’m Italian so I have say we know hand gestures for sure!
Have a nice day!
crossing the fingers is called a Hexenkreuz and is meant to wish someone to fail or to cancel a vow/promise if you make that gesture unseen while you are giving that vow.
In Italy, we call the point finger "indice" (literally "pointer"); we count also like German people, so I think it's a European thing to count starting with your thumb. As for clapping, we can whistle, but it could be misunderstood because in the past the whistle meant disapproval (now it is positive most of the time). We don't knock the wood anyway. To say "good luck" we cross the fingers too and we don't do the thumb thing.
We literally call that finger pointing finger in German. In English it’s also the “index finger”, but they might have lost the connection to “indicate”.
And I disagree with the ordering part of the video, would still show a thumb for the number one, but raising the arm with just the index finger or all five fingers to get attention.
We do whistling here only for very enthusiastic approval, so that’s a very intense form here.
We would spitting over somebody’s shoulder be a very intense form of wishing somebody good luck. But due to being intense, those are rare to witness.
2:16 John Cena's "You Can't See Me" taunt
Knocking on a table 2-3 times is a way to say "hello" or "goodbye" without disturbing the conversation.
We starting knocking after a presentation at the university, I think the reason why is we take German classes :D
You can also knock if you are joining a group of friends and say hello to them. It's easier and not that formal than greeting everyone directly. It's more used an festivals when all of them are in a talk with each other. With that you raise their attention, so they greet back and can continue. And you can join someone or, if you were just passing through, go on.
i also know that when you arrive on a family event, where you meet people you know but are not very close with, plus they are sitting together at one table and it would take to much time to greet everyone itself, you knock at the head of the table and wave to the whole table to say "Hello" to everyone.
To the knocking thing: You can also do it when you come late to a meeting with your friends. Instead of greeting everyone by shaking hands you can just knock on the table which means something like "hello to everyone on this table". The combination would be knocking and saying hello.
Crossing fingers can mean that you lie. So you stand in front of a person and you are telling a lie then you can cross your fingers behind your back to indicate that this is a lie.
With the knocking: I think applauding by knocking on the table is for formal occasions where clapping would be considered a little... loud, rude and tacky. Knocking on a pub table for me means saying bye to the whole table without shaking everyone's hand individually, which makes sense for a huge crowd and/or a seating arrangement where getting to everyone might be difficult.
When you leave a room with a lot of people at a table or enter you can knock on the table two times to say goodbye/hello to the whole table (but mostly you also say smth like "goodbye everyone" too)
its not just like putting your finger on your head. more like tipping your head and keep moving the finger like the hand in front of your face.
gret video! It is always a pleasure to see where the little differences are! I have alway so much fun with your videos! Thanks for that!
Now I will see what the Frickelbude does. I love DIY!
have a great weekend!
My father was in university in Holland and had a professor whose was presenting a thesis or paper about electric bells. Some engineering students rigged up bells and buzzers and then attended the lecture and rang their bells instead of knocking to insult him, because they hated him.
If someone came into a room and can not say hello to everyone he knocks on a table and the other people wave a hello xD
This is how my family and friends say hello if they are too late and to much people are in a room :'D
in germany you also knock on the table 2-3 times if you say goodbye to a group of people (like in a bar or crowed/loud place). that way you don't have to shake hands with everybody.
Pointing your index finger at your temple means "du hast einen Vogel" and the closest expression in English to that could be "you are bats in the bell tree".
Stefan Homberg at you temple? Temple = head? 😂
Solar Smile Temples = Schläfen
It's "having bats in the [or one's] _belfry_ " ;)
(A belfry is a tower with a bell, a "Glockenturm")
The "knocking on the table" is also used as a greeting of a group when there are to many to great personally. Like at a Bar for example.
In Belgium if you want to order a glass of beer u can put up your the little finger or pinkie . This is the hand gesture for a 'pintje' . This hand gesture is used in clubs or bars where the music is to loud. This ensures that the bartender knows what you want even tho he maybe can't hear you.
I don't know how you guys have witnessed this, but knocking on the table is done in a corporate environment, too. After a lecture or fruitful meeting, it's the sign that everything's wrapped up and people thank the lecturer or the person who leads a meeting by knocking on the table.
I think this is an agreement of some sorts, so that not everybody in the end has to thank the leading person or lecturer personally. At the same time, it signals unison, so that no single person needs further discussion or arguing.
Clapping is something you'd do in a much bigger event, like a rally, or speeches at bigger sites.
In Belgium
A crowed pub, we raise our arms, right hand = peace sign ( two), left hand = pinky .. means: two beers
pinky is slang for pint (beer)
In the Netherlands when you point your finger on the sides of your head, you don't really tap, it's more like twisting a little bit. It also means clever.
We sometimes do also knock on the table if you join or leave a bigger group of people that are having drinks together. This is just a polite but short way to say hello or goodbye to the whole table without having to hug everybody or shake hands. We often use this with a short sentence like "leute, ich packs" meaning "guys, I gotta go", so we can leave the group without interrupting conversations or having too much attention. in south western Germany (Baden) we do that pretty often
What I really enjoy is when Indian colleagues agree by shaking the upper part of their head left and right. It looks far more like approval than our heavy nod. What I think in comparison is "yey, I so totally agree that my head is dancing" to "yey... my head falls off."
The first thing about Crossing fingers is, that it is a hidden move to tell later "I didn't really mean it, it wasn't the truth." Or children then say "I crossed my finger, so my promise is not valid... I do not really know how to explain this in english... But i hope some will understand what i mean...
Great video by the way :-)
knocking the table is also common in clubs and other voluntary groups. For example, in the fire brigade, you'd knock after someone gave a theoretical lesson on a topic. This is quite similar to the University-settings, as basically everyone is thanking/honoring the teacher for their time.
I use 👌 as "cool" and ✌as "peace" so often. as well as the american sign language for "I love you," which is pinky, index finger, and thumb extended.
We also did the knocking thing in school, not just university.
I was told that the knocking instead of applause at the university comes from the times when everyone was writing their notes with pen and paper. Since students would still hold their pen in one hand, they would knock on the table with their other hand to signal applause.
When I was a kid I learned that if you put your thumb inside your hand, you push the luck out, so you have to put the thumb on top of your fist...
@Dana - the waving of the hand in front of the face means "you are completely blank" or "you have no clue what's going on", it's like wiping a whiteboard clean :)
Mr. German Man is right about the University knocking applause thing. In the auditoriums, it's common for students to knock the table with their non-dominant hand for applause or approval, because they are using their dominant hand to take notes and clapping would force them to interrupt their writing and possibly miss some information.
Actually, people had been accustomed to pressing the index finger's nail into the thumb's skin, decades ago, in order to avoid focus on a worse pain, like when the dentist finishes off with you. My mother and grandmother told me about this quite often. I still use this technique. :-D
Waving hands in front of your face, " Hey! Wake up! Are you conscious?"
Am Stammtisch kann das Klopfen auch einfach ein "hallo" oder "auf Wiedersehen" sein, wenn es eine größere Gruppe ist und man nicht jeden einzeln begrüßen kann/möchte oder aber auch nicht jeden kennt der dort sitzt.
Ansonsten gibt es auch noch das "toi, toi, toi" 3x auf Holz(!) klopfen. Das bedeutet so viel wie "hoffentlich geht das gut" oder "es möge gelingen". Die Herkunft davon ist auf Wikipedia ganz gut erklärt.
Gekreuzte Finger bedeuten hier eher das man schummelt oder lügt. Aber die Bedeutung von Dana ist hier auch nicht unbekannt und wird im Kontext meist verstanden.
Das "wedeln" vor dem Gesicht bedeutet sowas wie "der hat sie doch nicht mehr alle" und deutet sowas etwie einen Scheibenwischer beim Auto an. Die Person sollte also mal für klare Sicht sorgen.
Dann gibt es noch etwas zwischen dem "Fingertippen" und dem "vor dem Gesicht wedeln", das ist wenn man mit dem Zeigefinger zum Schläfenbereich hin eine Kreisform macht. Das bedeutet "der hat eine Schraube locker" und die Drehung deutet das Gewinde an bzw dass die Schraube mal wieder festgezogen werden sollte.
I use the thumb to indicate 1 too. But then my forearm is directed upwards and not horizontal as in the thumbsup. This works well in Germany, Norway and Sweden. So far there never has been any confusion when I ordered a beer.
there is a japanese hand gesture like holding the side of your hand towards your face and rutteling it using the elbow... it can mean "can you do it for me please" or "thank you so much" or "no i do not wanna do it cut it out" or also "can i go through please" it obviously depends on the situation and i used to do it 1000 times when i used to live in tokyo
The second one is called "Scheibenwischer" - The way you move your hand in front of your face.
Knock instead of clap origin: You need just one hand to knock. So you can knock and write or hold your beer at the same time.
If you cross your fingers while making a promise, you don't need to make what you promised. When I was child I always had to check, if there is any fingers crossed.
When I and actually all the people i know "push my thumbs" i put the thumb *in* the other fingers. And the old meaning of that is, to "keep" bad ghosts and goblins in you to stop them of getting out and make the others fale. That's how far I know it :D
Pointing your finger to your head (repeatedly) does mean, as some people in the comments have already indicated, "Du hast einen Vogel" meaning that you think the other person is a crazy person. That's probably why I also tend to whistle when I wave my hand in front of my face, i.e. imitating a bird's chirp.
Strangely enough in the Netherands when you point your finger at your forehead it means 'you are stupid' but when you point it at the side of your head it means 'you are clever'. Thank you most kindly.
The knocking on a table is also a form of greeting. If you come to a gathering of multiple people you know you might just knock a view times on the table when you enter instead of greeting everyone individually.
In the same way it is sometimes done if someone leaves. But that might just be regional thing^^
Pointing your pointer finger on your forehead means "you're crazy"/"bei dir piept's" and pointing that finger on the side of your gead means "ah great idea, haven't think of that".
Ich bin grad völlig verwirrt davon, Elisa hier zu sehen. Damit hab ich so gar nicht gerechnet. Habe sie glaub ich schon abonniert seit sie bei "Was geht ab!?" dabei war :)
I don't know if it's only us, but in my school we knock on the table to applause because it's actually not as loud as clapping our hands. So it's more like honoring them without disturbing the other classes. The teachers could get really angry if we're clapping.
3:25 This was used in Inglorious Bastards to "out" the spy.They were in a bar, and the spy ordered three glasses, using the English/American form, not the German.
It was subtle and clever, and frankly you don't expect subtle in a Terrintino movie (though clever IS expected).
The second one with the hand waving... yes, we have it here in the states and it means the same thing.
I'm British, so we do have some gestures in common, but I've never seen anyone point to their head to boast about their smart ideas. Also, we have peace signs as well, but it only counts as a peace sign if your palm is facing away from you. If you do it the other way round, it's an obscenity - exactly the same as the middle finger.
I only know the thumb pressing with the thumb sourrounded by the other fingers, not on top of them. Never seen that actually!
I would interpret waving the hand in front of your face as meaning "Helloooo!! Wake up! Is anybody home in there?"
You can use those crossed fingers in Germany, too. But it means something different. When you promise something and cross your fingers, you didn't really promise. But I think it's mostly used by children.💕🙈
Pointing the finger to the side of your head can also mean: "Think about it again" or "Think before you talk".
To call someone an idiot, just point the finger in the middle of your forehead, between your (rised) eyebows.
I know the knocking on the table also to greet a huge group of people (or to say goodbye) if you don't want to say hi or goodbye to everyone, for example at a gathering/party
More of you, can't get enough
Maybe I can clarify the "finger pointing to your head" thing for you:
When you want to gesture to someone "You are stupid" you repeatedly tap your forehead with your fingertip with your finger pointing into your head.
When you want to show the "I am smart" gesture, you tap your temple, but you finger is straight and is pointing upwards.
In the UK we tend to count both ways, but I'm pretty sure the German way is normally used more by children. Another gesture we have is doing the peace sign but backwards, with the palm of your hand facing yourself. It's a form of swearing that means f off so if in the UK, check the direction of your peace sign 😋
O.O good to know
well, it's basically same as american middle finger, but with index finger also unfolded. And normally whole gesture is a bit tilted.
Hannah Griffiths I think children do it the German way more often because it might be the way we all used to do it over here, but American gestures have slowly been imported through media. (Not that that's a bad thing, but globalisation is happening all the time.)
Just the way that crossed fingers used to have the definite meaning that you're lying (over here in Germany, at least), but I think if you were to use them as a "Good luck!" gesture, nowadays people would understand.
The backwards peace sign means victory in many countries. It
is only offensive in the UK and possibly France as it is related to a battle
fought between these two countries.
No, it's likely to result with a very offended person in Australia too given our English roots. except for the knocking and face wave we seem to be more German in our hand use.
Oh my God. It all makes sense now. When I was young, I would watch the sequel of the little mermaid and her daughter would have a big birthday party. So right before she goes down the stairs to her dancing partner, the mother would wish her luck and cross her fingers. All the time I've wondered why Ariel is so mean to her own daughter. ( because crossing your finger means you lie in Germany)
The second one is a very general term for vision impaired.
Basically it can be used to say that "I can't see"
Applause, outside of a cinema/theater/stage, is often used in an ironic way. Like when I do something minor and brag about it and people applaud they kind of imply that they're not THAT impressed with my deed as I am. Thus the knocking is meant to ensure to say "We mean it" whereas applaus in these situations could be mistaken for mockery. In the university it's simply more convenient - it makes a lot of noise without much effort and you can still operate your smartphone with the free hand. ^^
A gesture that i know and use a lot is "knocking on wood" and you knock on your head. it means that you hope that stuff don't happen.
knocking on the table..
we had a few guest students and a professor from the US at our university. At the end of the first session with them our poor American fellows flinched and looked heavily shocked when the whole room started knocking on the tables.
Knocking instead of clapping requires a desk, so, yeah I only know it from classroom/conference room situations.
And knocking on the table in social gatherings I never saw as a thanks but as a greeting to a larger group sitting at said table.
Elisa is so cute, and I tried to look at her content. Its looks good, but sadly my german is no good. Nice collaboration though and her site is very good. Well done girls; good energy and lots of smiles; very key element IMO
Not a German, but we have some gestures taken from them - finger to head gesture for us is not just holdig finger, you tap it to hed a bit (like" knoc, knoc, is ayone home?" - because for studpid there is nobody home (mening head)) . We also count from thumb, and "hold a tumb" for good luck. And you cross fingers whn you lie (you hide your hands from person you lie to).
The finger to the forehead is definitely "i have an idea" if the main movement is away from the head (in sign language it's even the official gesture, think "look at what came out of my head!"). If you poke the head it's like "is there anybody in there?" -> slight brain damage.
Clapping is something you do for a nice action e.g in a musical or something. Knocking on the table is if you did something good with your brain like a presentation.
The wave in front of the face is basically face palming.
When counting to myself I start with the thumb.
the *fingertotheforhead* movement often goes along with the saying "du hast einen Vogel!". Also you tap the finger on the middle of the forhead. I've never seen anyone simply point to the side of the head.
that second gesture (waving the hand in front of the face) is kinda similar to something I (an American) would do if i was talking to someone and they weren't really paying attention like "earth to Dana, are you listening to me?" *waves hand in face*
The pointy finger at the head means: "Is there anything going on in there??"
The wave in front of the face is similar to trying to get somebodys attention when they are daydreaming or elsewhere in their thoughts: "Hello, wake up! Pay attention! What were you thinking?!"