15 Interesting Facts About Left-Handed People

My son is only 18 months old so it’s definitely too soon to know for certain, but he seems to be left-handed. He eats with his left hand, he picks up things with his left hand, throws things with his left hand etc. I have no intention of trying to ‘turn’ him into a right handed, as it used to happen back in the day, but it did trigger my curiosity about left handed people: why they are left handed and how is their quality of life.   

Well, researchers have so far been unable to find a scientific reason why some people are born left-handed, others right-handed. There are various theories, some claiming genetic factors, others high testosterone levels. Then there are some frightening theories from the Middle Ages that say it is the ‘Devil’s hand’ and other crazy things. Let’s put aside the causes and look at some interesting characteristics of left-handed people. 

Interesting Facts About Left Handed People 

1. Only 10% of the world's population is left-handed;
2. From 1992, on August 13th, the International Lefthanders Day is celebrated;
3. Four of the last seven US presidents were left-handed;
4. 1 in 4 astronauts are left-handed;
5. 40% of tennis players are left-handed;
6. In Asia there are the most left-handed, and the least in Africa;
7. In some cultures, it is considered unpopular or even prohibited by law to be left-handed, and in the Middle Ages left-handedness was punished with death. In other cultures, being left-handed means you are lucky and you are attracting wealth.
8. Lefthanders get angry faster than right-handers;
9. Lefthanders are more inclined towards creative, sports, artistic, musical activities;
10. According to psychologists and researchers, left-handed people are more independent, more intelligent, more adaptable and more resilient to social pressures;
11. Lefthanders are more creative, more efficient and quicker when it comes to performing tasks;
12. Lefthanders tend to earn more money than right-handers;
13. Left-handed people experience emotions more intensely;
14. There are 50% more left-handed men than women;
15. Famous lefthanders: Leonardo da Vinci, Einstein, Newton, Picasso, Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Napoleon, Michelangelo, Beethoven, Benjamin Franklin, Henry Ford, Barack Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Bill Gates, Queen Mother, Charles Darwin, Fidel Castro, Paul McCartney, Charlie Chaplin, Lewis Carroll, Mozart, Nietzsche, Mark Twain, Prince William.   

Left-handed or right-handed, our children are unique, and we have to appreciate them as they are, without trying to change them or put labels on them. Being left-handed is not a defect or a shortcoming. Left-handedness is nothing more than a human trait which can be extremely useful if you make the most of it.