Liberian snap handshake

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In Liberia, the snap handshake or finger snap is a gesture of greeting, in which two people shake hands in the conventional Western way, but end the handshake with a mutual press of the fingers that creates a "snap" sound.^[1]

Apocryphally, the custom is attributed to the Americo-Liberian population of freed slaves, who created the gesture to contrast with slave owners' practice of breaking slaves' fingers.^[2]

During the 2014–15 Ebola epidemic, handshaking in Liberia was curtailed, leading a BBC commentator to note that avoidance of handshaking was detrimental to the established custom of the Liberian handshake.^[3]

References

^ Leanne Olson (2009). A Cruel Paradise: Journals of an International Relief Worker. Insomniac Press. pp. 50–. ISBN 978-1-897414-89-7.
^ Ayodeji Olukoju (2006). Culture and Customs of Liberia. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 119–. ISBN 978-0-313-33291-3.
^ "Ebola outbreak: How Liberia lost its handshake". BBC News. 20 September 2014.

v t e Gestures
Friendly gestures	Air kiss Applause Biker wave Cheek kiss Dap Elbow bump Eskimo kiss Finger heart Fist bump Forehead kiss Hand heart Handshake Hand wave High five Hongi ILY sign Kiss Liberian snap handshake Lip kiss Namaste OK Pinky swear Pound hug Shaka Thumb signal
Gestures of respect	Adab Añjali Mudrā Bow Canonical digits Curtsy Fist-and-palm Gadaw Genuflection Hand-kiss Hat tip Kowtow Kuji-in Mano Mudra Namaste Ojigi Orans Pranāma Prostration Sampeah Sembah Schwurhand Wai Zolgokh
Salutes	Bellamy salute Nazi salute Raised fist Roman salute Scout sign and salute Three-finger salute (Serbian) Three-finger salute (pro-democracy) Two-finger salute Vulcan salute Wolf salute Zogist salute
Celebratory gestures	Applause Crossed hands Fist pump High five Low five Victory clasp V sign
Finger-counting	Chinese number gestures Chisanbop Finger binary
Obscene gestures	Anasyrma Bras d'honneur Fig sign Middle finger Mooning Mountza Nazi salute Reversed V sign Shocker Sign of the horns Thumb/index-finger ring Wanker
Taunts	Akanbe Loser Talk to the hand
Head motions	Head bobble Head shake Nod
Other gestures	Air quotes Allergic salute Aussie salute Awkward turtle Che vuoi? Crossed fingers Distress signal Duterte fist Eyelid pull Facepalm Finger gun Gang signal Hand-in-waistcoat Hand rubbing Jazz hands Laban sign Merkel-Raute Pointing Pollice verso Shrug Sign of the cross Lesser sign of the cross
Related	List of gestures Articulatory gestures Finger pinching conspiracy theory Hand signals Manual communication Mudra Nonverbal communication Sign language

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