High five

This article is about the gesture. For other uses, see High five (disambiguation).

"Gimme five" redirects here. For the ITV children's show, see Gimme 5.

A high five is a celebratory gesture made by two people, each raising one hand to slap the raised hand of the other — usually meant to communicate mutual satisfaction to spectators or to extend congratulations from one person to another. The arms are usually extended into the air to form the "high" part, and the five fingers of each hand meet, making the "five".

Several variations on the standard high five exist in order to add uniqueness to the experience and to maximize satisfaction. One such variation is the "flipside", also called the "windmill"; this method begins like a regular high five, however upon meeting up top, both high-fivers continue to swing their arms downwards until they meet again in a "low five". This method is depicted in the feature film Top Gun repeatedly. Names are occasionally given to high fives in order to add uniqueness. Examples of fictional characters who do this are the character of "The Todd" from the series Scrubs, and Barney Stinson from the series How I Met Your Mother. Cosmo Kramer of Seinfeld is prone to giving strangers the high five, usually as a greeting, when it is not suitable nor appropriate.

If one initiates a high five by raising a hand into the air and no one consummates the celebration by slapping the raised hand, the initiator is said to be "left hanging." This is considered to be a somewhat embarrassing faux pas.

Origins

Like many elements of popular culture the origin of the high five is not definitively known.

The high five, although not known by that name, actually appeared as early as 1955, during the November 15, 1955 episode "The Eating Contest" of The Phil Silvers Show.

In the movie Cover Girl (1944), co-starring Phil Silvers, his character, Genius, after tearing up a telegram, attempts to "high five" co-star Gene Kelly.

Many sources cite baseball player Glenn Burke as the inventor of the high five, although there are references to the gesture that predate his 'invention'. Many sources are not clear whether they are crediting Burke with the first high five, or the first high five in baseball. According to the story, in 1977 Burke ran out onto the field to congratulate his Los Angeles Dodgers teammate Dusty Baker for hitting a home run in the last game of the regular season. He raised his hand in congratulation, Baker also raised his hand, and the two hands met. The second recorded "high five" came moments later when Baker returned the favor in celebration of Burke's first major league home run.^{[citation needed]}

The Low Five

The low five, a slightly less popular variant of the high five, can be documented as far back as the 1920's. In the 1927 film The Jazz Singer, an ecstatic Al Jolson gives another character the low five upon hearing that he was asked to audition for a Broadway revue.

Air five

An air five is a variation of the normal high five, but the two senders are too far to physically touch. Instead, they can either pretend to high five and make a WHOOPISH sound effect, or pretend to high five, and slap the bottom of the forearm at the same time. Sometimes people will combine the two to create an almost normal high five.

External links

• National High Five Day is celebrated on the third Thursday in April every year.  The Seventh Annual National High Five Day will occur on April 17, 2008.
• High Five Me includes further information on the history and different forms of the high five, plus detailed information on the science of the high five.
• The Man Who Invented the High-Five includes the story of Glenn Burke's supposed invention of the high five.
• Gimme Five: History of a Handshake documentary.

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