Scout handshake
Encyclopedia
The left-handed Scout handshake is a formal way of greeting other Scouts of both genders used by members of Scout and Guide
organizations around the world when greeting other Scouts. The handshake is made with the hand nearest the heart and is offered as a token of friendship. In most situations, the handshake is made firmly, without interlocking fingers, and many organizations only use this handshake when both people are in uniform. There are some variations of the handshake between national Scouting organizations and also within some program sections.
The 1935 Boy Scout Handbook
says that "By agreement of the Scout Leaders throughout the world, Boy Scouts greet Brother Scouts with a warm left hand clasp."
All World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts
members share the left handshake, and when meeting other Girl Guides and Girl Scouts, it may be used in conjunction with the Girl Scout sign done with the right hand.
. There exist various versions of the Prempeh story, all centering around African warriors using the left hand to hold their shields and to lower it and shake the left hand of the person was to show they trusted each other.
According to the Ashanti warrior version of the story, then-Colonel Baden-Powell saluted them with his right hand, but the Ashanti chiefs offered their left hands and said, "In our land only the bravest of the brave shake hands with the left hand, because to do so we must drop our shields and our protection." The Ashantis knew of Baden-Powell's bravery because they had fought against him and with him, and they were proud to offer the left hand of bravery.
The term itself was used as the title of a work by Hilary Saint George Saunders
, The Left Handshake: The Boy Scout Movement during the War, 1939-1945, because of the extraordinary courage shown during those times. According to the foreword by British
Chief Scout Lord Rowallan
,
The left hand is also closer to the heart, with that attendant symbolism.
Scouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....
organizations around the world when greeting other Scouts. The handshake is made with the hand nearest the heart and is offered as a token of friendship. In most situations, the handshake is made firmly, without interlocking fingers, and many organizations only use this handshake when both people are in uniform. There are some variations of the handshake between national Scouting organizations and also within some program sections.
The 1935 Boy Scout Handbook
Boy Scout Handbook
The Boy Scout Handbook is the official handbook of the Boy Scouts of America. It is a descendant of Baden-Powell's original handbook, Scouting for Boys, which has been the basis for Scout handbooks in many countries, with some variations to the text of the book depending on each country's codes and...
says that "By agreement of the Scout Leaders throughout the world, Boy Scouts greet Brother Scouts with a warm left hand clasp."
All World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts
World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts
The World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts is a global association supporting the female-oriented and female-only Scouting organizations in 145 countries. It was established in 1928 and has its headquarters in London, England. It is the counterpart of the World Organization of the Scout...
members share the left handshake, and when meeting other Girl Guides and Girl Scouts, it may be used in conjunction with the Girl Scout sign done with the right hand.
Meaning of the left-hand
Various sources have attributed the origin of the handshake, as an ancient sign of bravery and respect, to Lord Baden-Powell's encounter after battle with Prempeh I, or to earlier published works by Ernest Thompson SetonErnest Thompson Seton
Ernest Thompson Seton was a Scots-Canadian who became a noted author, wildlife artist, founder of the Woodcraft Indians, and one of the founding pioneers of the Boy Scouts of America . Seton also influenced Lord Baden-Powell, the founder of Scouting...
. There exist various versions of the Prempeh story, all centering around African warriors using the left hand to hold their shields and to lower it and shake the left hand of the person was to show they trusted each other.
According to the Ashanti warrior version of the story, then-Colonel Baden-Powell saluted them with his right hand, but the Ashanti chiefs offered their left hands and said, "In our land only the bravest of the brave shake hands with the left hand, because to do so we must drop our shields and our protection." The Ashantis knew of Baden-Powell's bravery because they had fought against him and with him, and they were proud to offer the left hand of bravery.
The term itself was used as the title of a work by Hilary Saint George Saunders
Hilary Saint George Saunders
Hilary Aidan Saint George Saunders was a British author. Saunders was born in Clifton, near Bristol. During World War I he served with the Welsh Guards....
, The Left Handshake: The Boy Scout Movement during the War, 1939-1945, because of the extraordinary courage shown during those times. According to the foreword by British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Chief Scout Lord Rowallan
Thomas Corbett, 2nd Baron Rowallan
Thomas Godfrey Polson Corbett, 2nd Baron Rowallan, KT, KBE, MC, TD , had a distinguished military career, was Chief Scout of the British Commonwealth and Empire and Governor of Tasmania.-Early life:...
,
When Colonel Baden-Powell entered the capital city of the Ashanti people in 1890 he was met by one of the Chiefs who came to him holding out his left hand. B.-P. held out his right in return but the Chief said: "No, in my country the bravest of the brave shake with the left hand." So began the "left handshake" of the world-wide brotherhood of Scouts. In this book are told some of the stories of courage and endurance shown by Scouts in many different countries during the war of 1939-45. There would not be room even in many books to tell them all. Many, indeed, can never be told; some for political reasons, some because the actors died unknown. They remembered their Promise, to do their best to do their duty to God, and their Country; to think of other people and not themselves. So, when the time came, they were prepared in body and in spirit to render their service. Their record is unsurpassed; they were "the bravest of the brave."
The left hand is also closer to the heart, with that attendant symbolism.