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216:. Emmis Communications. May 1990. pg. 177. "In early Christian days, a believer confronted by evil or hostile influences implored the power of the Holy Cross for protection by twisting his middle finger over his forefinger and holding the remaining fingers down with his thumb."
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we started crossing our fingers in order to represent the cross of Christ, which grants a person protection from evil. Crossed fingers are dispayed in some
Christian art, apparently with the meaning that "Christ is
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Quirk Books. 2003. pg. 201. "Children are a big proponent of this gesture, though they usually use it when telling white lies, believing that having the fingers crossed behind the back makes it okay to
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In German-speaking countries, as well as Sweden and Latvia, the gesture is a sign of lying. Instead, wishing for luck is gestured by holding one’s thumbs. The same gesture is used in many
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In pre-Christian
Western Europe, a related gesture had two people crossing their index fingers to form a cross, which represented perfect unity; this gesture was used to make wishes.
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the protection of the Holy Cross. The gesture is referred to by the common expressions "cross your fingers", "keep your fingers crossed", or just "fingers crossed".
103:. Its earliest documented reference is from 1912, linked to the superstition surrounding ladders. Remarkably, the crossed fingers gesture persists in school
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The crossed fingers gesture is believed to have originated with its resemblance to the Cross of Christ. It gained traction, especially in 16th-century
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Crossed fingers remain a widely recognized and practised symbol, showing the enduring nature of cultural superstitions and protective
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republics. In South Africa, Afrikaans speakers also have the related phrase "duim vashou" meaning "holding thumbs tightly".
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the gesture is considered rude, especially to another person. Referring to female genitals, it is comparable to the
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To a child, forget ethics. Crossing your fingers while making a promise truly invalidated the promise.
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The practice of crossing fingers for luck or protection against misfortune is deeply ingrained in the
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64:. By extension, a similar belief is that crossing one's fingers invalidates a promise being made.
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How Does Olive Oil Lose Its
Virginity?: Answers to the Enigmatic Questions of Contemporary Life
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FYI - Bean
Counters Have Sexy Ideas Too: Histories and Mysteries of Words Used in the Office
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Pressing thumbs as gesture to wish for luck in German-speaking and many Slavic countries
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118:. The symbol is used as the logo of the UK National Lottery.
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99:. Interestingly, this tradition is less familiar in mainland
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26:"Fingers Crossed" redirects here. For other uses, see
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337:"Things not to do in Vietnam #1: "Crossed fingers""
427:Panati's Extraordinary Origins of Everyday Things
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149:countries such as Poland, the Czech Republic,
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388:Polish-language Knowledge: trzymanie kciuków
363:"Vietnamese body language and what it means"
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53:. Early Christians used the gesture to
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286:. Three Winged Creations. p. 220.
238:
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430:. New York: Harper & Row. p.
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281:
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311:Tindall, Bruce; Watson, Mark (1994).
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815:Three-finger salute (pro-democracy)
341:Weirdwonderfulvietnam.wordpress.com
121:
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400:"Držati (nekom) palčeve. - Idioms"
111:shield against perceived threats.
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367:Vietnameselanguage.wordpress.com
28:Fingers Crossed (disambiguation)
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810:Three-finger salute (Serbian)
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76:, where people crossed their
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248:. Macmillan. p. 287.
49:commonly used to wish for
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424:Panati, Charles (1989).
226:Field Guide to Gestures.
19:Not to be confused with
1193:Nonverbal communication
977:Thumb/index-finger ring
899:Chinese number gestures
601:Liberian snap handshake
107:, where it serves as a
315:. Quill. p. 106.
131:
38:
1246:Christian terminology
1173:Articulatory gestures
805:Scout sign and salute
282:Marolt, Rick (2006).
214:Orange Coast Magazine
142:in American culture.
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36:
1183:Manual communication
844:Celebratory gestures
467:at Wikimedia Commons
645:Gestures of respect
404:Lyricstranslate.com
43:cross one's fingers
153:, Bulgaria and ex-
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39:
1241:Christian symbols
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1205:
1152:Sign of the cross
1112:Hand-in-waistcoat
972:Sign of the horns
820:Two-finger salute
509:Friendly gestures
463:Media related to
322:978-0-688-12681-0
293:978-0-9777376-0-4
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1168:List of gestures
1010:Talk to the hand
919:Obscene gestures
667:Canonical digits
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122:Related gestures
84:and ill health.
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835:Zogist salute
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561:Forehead kiss
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369:. 29 May 2011
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343:. 29 May 2015
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175:God bless you
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140:middle finger
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1225:Christianity
1178:Hand signals
1132:Merkel-Raute
1117:Hand rubbing
1087:Duterte fist
1076:
1019:Head motions
800:Roman salute
687:Genuflection
657:Añjali Mudrā
636:Thumb signal
551:Finger heart
426:
419:
407:. Retrieved
403:
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371:. Retrieved
366:
357:
345:. Retrieved
340:
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299:victorious".
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263:. Retrieved
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185:Sacramentals
159:
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80:to ward off
71:
59:
47:hand gesture
42:
40:
21:Finger heart
16:Hand gesture
1107:Gang signal
1092:Eyelid pull
1026:Head bobble
957:Nazi salute
830:Wolf salute
795:Raised fist
790:Nazi salute
742:Prostration
621:Pinky swear
546:Eskimo kiss
409:13 December
373:13 December
347:13 December
260:Widdershins
245:Widdershins
170:Benediction
105:playgrounds
97:Scandinavia
1235:Categories
1127:Laban sign
1122:Jazz hands
1102:Finger gun
1052:Air quotes
1031:Head shake
757:Schwurhand
566:Hand heart
541:Elbow bump
531:Cheek kiss
265:2013-05-29
201:References
1072:Che vuoi?
904:Chisanbop
866:High five
861:Fist pump
692:Hand-kiss
626:Pound hug
581:High five
576:Hand wave
571:Handshake
556:Fist bump
62:white lie
1137:Pointing
1097:Facepalm
937:Fig sign
927:Anasyrma
871:Low five
851:Applause
606:Lip kiss
591:ILY sign
526:Applause
521:Air kiss
502:Gestures
242:(2007).
164:See also
155:Yugoslav
151:Slovakia
109:symbolic
89:cultural
1256:Fingers
1161:Related
967:Shocker
952:Mountza
947:Mooning
777:Salutes
767:Zolgokh
747:Sampeah
737:Pranāma
722:Namaste
707:Kuji-in
697:Hat tip
611:Namaste
136:Vietnam
116:rituals
78:fingers
74:England
55:implore
1211:Portal
1188:Mudras
1000:Akanbe
992:Taunts
982:Wanker
881:V sign
752:Sembah
702:Kowtow
672:Curtsy
438:
319:
290:
252:
147:Slavic
101:Europe
68:Origin
1271:Lying
1147:Shrug
1005:Loser
732:Orans
727:Ojigi
717:Mudra
682:Gadaw
631:Shaka
586:Hongi
516:Aegyo
229:fib."
190:Sfiga
180:Orans
82:evils
45:is a
1266:Luck
712:Mano
652:Adab
596:Kiss
436:ISBN
411:2017
375:2017
349:2017
317:ISBN
288:ISBN
250:ISBN
51:luck
1036:Nod
762:Wai
662:Bow
536:Dap
134:In
41:To
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616:OK
434:.
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365:.
339:.
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258:.
93:UK
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
