Do you go in for a handshake? A fist bump? An awkward little wave? A year ago, health experts seemed to declare the handshake dead. But that was back when most people knew little about the novel coronavirus and no vaccine was in sight.
So now that the pandemic is in retreat in some parts of the world, is it time to give the handshake another shot? Read More. Like many questions that have come up over the past 15 confusing months, there is no explicitly right or wrong answer. But we've learned a lot about the virus since the world first went into lockdown, so maybe it's time to revisit the question. Why do we shake hands in the first place? Holiday Travel. Road Trips. Travel for Good. Photo Essays. Travelers Choice Awards.
Weekend Getaways. Air Travel. Business Travel. Packing Tips. The Future of Travel. Travel Etiquette. Travel Tips. Trending News. It works for contemporary leaders, too. Since local health ministries banned physical greetings, many Emirati have been replacing hugs and traditional Emirati nose kisses a traditional Bedouin greeting that consists of a simultaneous nose touch and handshake by waving or by placing a hand to the heart, said local writer and publisher Natasha Amar.
Pressing a hand to the heart was already a common greeting among Emirati of the opposite sex before Covid, but contactless same-sex greetings are a cultural abnormality that Emiratis are struggling to adopt. Emirati women typically exchange cheek-kisses while men share Emirati nose kisses. In some provinces, as many as eight kisses may be given in a single greeting.
Afghans tend to hold non-formal conversations in close proximity. But social distancing has pushed people to adapt with a right-handed salute or wave, gestures formerly used to greet someone from afar, said Kabul resident, Saber Alimi. If you liked this story, sign up for the weekly bbc. Share using Email. As social distancing lingers, many cultures around the world are adapting their distinct greetings to fit the new normal.
If customs and traditions are not applicable or harm people, we change them. My first experience with the small, but rapidly growing movement to eliminate handshaking was in a chiropractic office in Singapore two weeks ago. Some people aren't these days," the chiro said, extending his hand before awkwardly retracting it.
I did — to break the oddness of the moment — but I did not, actually, want to. I'd started feeling wary about the gesture since coronavirus cases had begun to slowly tick up in Singapore in mid-February. Within a week, the hands-free trend was in full effect.
Job candidates declared they weren't shaking hands with interviewers in our office. People discussed the subject at parties and at work, signaling their stances with palms planted firmly in their pockets or behind their backs. When handshakes did take place, the greeting was strangely limp and lifeless — two people engaging in an act that neither really welcomed.
Suddenly no one knew how to casually say hello anymore. Especially if you're someone who travels frequently, meeting new people from new places, it feels important to offer some sort of physical gesture.
And what's the etiquette for turning down a handshake anyway? Contactless greetings are gaining traction everywhere from parliament houses to sporting events and morning talk shows. In a widely-viewed video , German Chancellor Angela Merkel's outstretched hand was rejected by Horst Seehofer, the country's interior minister; the two laughed as she pivoted to a chummy double-handed wave.
Chances are good that once the threat of coronavirus settles, handshaking will continue as usual. But perhaps it's time to reconsider the tradition — one we know leads to illness and disease transmission.
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