Why are Left-handed people...

[atrollope]

...still maligned in the English language/everyday use?
This stems from Heraldic terms:- Dexter and Sinister/Right and Left.
So the words are archaic,and no longer relevant,yet right is everything
good - Dextrous,Adroit..while Left is Sinister,ominous or evil,Gauche,
naive and unrefined.I,for one,protest at this continued Leftism!;0)

[Euphemia]

Very elite!

[MarkRae]

> This stems from Heraldic terms

Not really. Dexter and sinister were simply right and left in Latin, respectively. Heraldry took most of its terms from Old French (which some people call Norman), since that was where chivalry originated. Chivalry originally meant simply the occupation of being a 'chevalier', which we call in English a 'knight'.

In heraldic terms, dexter means on or starting from the wearer's right, and sinister the equivalent on or starting from the left - no notion of good and bad implied. The heraldic adjectives are dextral and sinstral, not dexterous and sinister.

However, quite independent from heraldry, right-hand magic was always good and left-hand magic was always bad. Why this was is not fully understood. Therefore, via standard etymology, dexterous has inherited positive association and sinister bad.

[slinky.kate]

its amazing the things you can do,you are blessed if you are corrie-fisted.

[bigglez]

iphones aint easy 4 leftys

[B00]

<<,always used to get a rollocking at school for smudging my writing with being a lefty, as we push the pen across the page rather than pull.

[The Builder]

Me too, Boo .................. and all my power tools blow stuff into my face in a smug, righteous manner .........................

[lozzer50]

all the women in my immediate family are left handed including e and my daughters. most things are geared towards right handers unfortunately, but we cope !!!! im proud to be sinister lol

[craft1948]

They're bloody awful to play against at tennis............

[DTCwordfan]

Increasingly ambidextrous as life goes on!

I have mentioned it before, lefties need to take care when eating with chopsticks - just like the Middle East, right hand is for eating, left hand for the bum. A Chinese Mom will rap her left-handed youngster's hand if they use the sticks that way. As a visitor, the thing to do is to apologise in advance and say that you can only use them left handed - it shows that you have a little knowledge of their culture.......

[Old_Geezer]

Unsure I understand that. If different folk have strength in forehand or in backhand, why would the favoured hand make that much difference ? Isn't playing a lefty forehander much the same and a righty backhander ?

[B00]

or just blow a raspberry at your host and produce a knife and fork from your pocket ^

;-)

[jomifl]

I think it stems from the kind of rules of personal hygiene which gave rise to the expression 'cackhanded'

[tenrec]

I'm left and proud. LOL

[vulcan]

"As the right hemisphere of the brain controls the left side of the body then only left-handers are in their right minds!"

[atrollope]

Bravo,vulcan42 ;-)

[flip_flop]

I a left-hooker.

Mrs Flop often wonders aloud whether my "disability" should entitle me to a blue badge!

[atrollope]

I would properly call him Mr Zamora....he is a big unit!