Although no one knows the exact date or person, it is believed that way back in medieval times, someone invented the handshake.  That gesture communicated to others, “I’m not carrying a weapon.  It’s safe to approach me.”  And ever since that time, the handshake has been viewed as the most commonly accepted means of greeting another person, especially in a business setting.

 

Some now suggest that the handshake may be about to become passé.  In some cases, the handshake is being supplanted by any of a number of other gestures.  Included among the alternatives are the fist bump, also known as the “dap,” recently exchanged by Senator Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, on the night he secured the nomination of the Democratic Party. Less likely to be accepted in business settings is another alternative, the chest bump, recently exchanged by President Bush and an attendee of the Air Force Academy at that institution’s recent graduation ceremony.

 

To learn more about the history, dangers and coolness ratings of several greeting possibilities, go to:  www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/living/s_574994.html.