“Unfortunately, in Iran and neighboring countries like Afghanistan, the thumbs-up is equivalent to the middle finger!” explains Dana Hooshmand, an author for Discover Discomfort, a language- and culture learning resource. In America, the middle finger is the profane one; in Iran, it's the thumb.
Many cultures have a rude 'finger' gesture, either sticking up two fingers or the middle finger at someone as an insult. Myth says that during the Hundred Years War between England and France, when the Frenchmen were able to capture their English enemies, they would cut off their index and middle finger.
Germany takes things a little far when it comes to the middle finger. It's regarded as an insult punishable by the law. Under German's insult law, using curse words and insulting gestures like the middle finger and sticking out the tongue is illegal.
Pointing with the index finger
Even if you don't mean anything negative by it, pointing at someone or something with only one finger is considered very rude and impolite in parts of the Middle East. Many people interpret it as if you're singling them out or making fun of them.
10: The Middle Finger
The middle finger is probably the most obscene gesture in the U.S. The most offensive gesture in America is flipping someone off.
Obscene Gestures: Raising one's middle finger or making the 'V' sign with one's palm facing oneself is considered very rude in Australia.
In India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka the social circles exposed to the western cultures use the middle finger gesture in the same sense that it is used in those cultures. The same is true for most South Asian countries. In Portugal this gesture is also called "Pirete" or "Manguito".
Malaysia: Pointing with your index finger
As a little kid, you may have been chastised that “it's rude to point!” especially if you dared pair the gesture with laughter. But, while it can be inconsiderate in certain circumstances around the world, an index-finger point is always rude in Malaysia.
In Japan, fingers' names are called the following: #1 The thumb is oyayubi (親指), the “parent finger”. #2 The index finger is hitosashiyubi (人差し指), the “pointing finger”. #3 The middle finger has the same meaning as in English, and is called nakayubi (中指).
The middle and ring fingers are clenched while the thumb, index and and little fingers are extended. Often they're used as a superstitious gesture – the devil's horns are said to drive away curses or bad luck. Inevitably they're also an insult.
The German Finger Wrestling Championship is a traditional rural sport played by Germans in Bavarian costumes since 1959. It is a sport where two men matched in age and weight sit and face each other over a table and thread their fingers into a leather band.
The Schwurhand (German pronunciation: [ˈʃvuːɐ̯hant], "swear-hand"; Dutch: spreekgebaar) is a heraldic charge depicting the hand gesture that is used in Germanic Europe and neighboring countries, when swearing an oath in court, in office or in swearing-in.
"what do you want?"), alternatively described as ma che vuoi?, ma che dici?/ma che stai dicendo? ("what are you talking about?"), or simply che? ("what?"), is one of the best known hand gestures of Italy. In English, it is sometimes referred to as "pinched fingers" or "finger purse" (Italian: mano a borsa).
The V sign, when the palm is facing toward the person giving the sign, has long been an insulting gesture in the United Kingdom, and later in Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. It is frequently used to signify defiance (especially to authority), contempt, or derision.
While Americans 'flip the bird' with a single middle finger, the British have traditionally achieved the same with two. The two-fingered salute, or backwards victory or V-sign, made with the middle and index fingers, is said to have originated with English archers at Agincourt in 1415.
Meaning of two fingers in English
in Britain, a sign that is considered rude, made by holding your hand up with your palm facing towards you and your first and second fingers held in a V shape: She drove past and stuck two fingers up at him. SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases.
The finger heart gesture has become an important symbol of affection and support, particularly in Korean pop culture and among fans of K-pop. It is often used by idols to express their love and gratitude to their fans, and by fans to show their support for their favorite idols and each other.
According to Chinese tradition, engagement rings are worn on the middle finger, while wedding rings are worn on opposite hands by the bride and the groom. The bride wears a band on her right hand, while the groom wears his on the left.
This full-body gesture is also used as "OK" in Japan where the single-handed gesture connotes monetary transactions instead of meaning "OK". This two-armed OK gesture was added to Unicode in 2010 under the name "Face With OK Gesture" (U+1F646 "?") and became part of Emoji 1.0 in 2015.
Thumbs-Up. Avoid using this gesture in: Afghanistan, Iran, parts of Italy, and Greece. The gesture of 'Thumbs-up may look cool on Facebook or USA, but in Afghanistan, Iran, parts of Italy, and Greece, it means "up yours." So, to avoid any awkwardness, next time you must reconsider what you are doing.
In China, if one holds up a little finger at another, it is usually considered vulgar, just as holding up a middle finger in the United States and other countries is generally regarded as offensive.
The middle finger gesture was used in ancient times as a symbol of sexual intercourse, in a manner meant to degrade, intimidate and threaten the individual receiving the gesture.
Hold up your right fist with the back of your hand facing the other person and raise just your middle finger. This is about the most aggressive/ offensive gesture in English, meaning basically “f*ck you”, often as a replacement for actually hitting someone.
It is considered as a means of expressing your liking towards something. However, if you give thumbs up in Iran means indecent and offensive insult which means “sit on it”. This is similar to raise your middle finger up. So keep this in mind while giving a thumbs up in Iran, it may be land you in trouble.
“Unfortunately, in Iran and neighboring countries like Afghanistan, the thumbs-up is equivalent to the middle finger!” explains Dana Hooshmand, an author for Discover Discomfort, a language- and culture learning resource. In America, the middle finger is the profane one; in Iran, it's the thumb.