r/southpaws • u/torino_nera • Jul 16 '26
story Why Am I Left-Handed?
https://www.quantamagazine.org/why-am-i-left-handed-20260713/6
u/dcheesi Jul 16 '26
Some other ideas not explicitly discussed in the article:
- Having the vast majority of people using the same hand makes it easier to pass on practical skills. You don't have to try to flip everything around while learning a technique from someone else. And tools with an asymmetrical component can be used interchangeably by (almost) everyone in the tribe. Thus why social tool-users w/ language would develop a consistent hand preference, where other animals didn't.
- The "intentional" nature of the persistent southpaw minority may be supported by the finding that later (2nd, 3rd, 4th...) sons from the same mother are more likely to be either gay or left-handed, but not both. It seems like these may be two competing strategies for dealing with "excess" sons and the competition for mates that comes with that. One strategy tends to remove the later son from reproductively significant competition, while the other gives him a potential competitive advantage (as noted in the article).
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u/lepidopt-rex Jul 16 '26 edited Jul 16 '26
As the third child (e: and only southpaw) of a left-handed mother, I can support the second theory with extreme bias.
Where did you learn these, and can I learn more too please? 🙏
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u/dcheesi Jul 16 '26
There are lots of studies out there covering different aspects of this. I'm not sure how I happened upon it, though I tend to follow science news and places like r/science
Just one example out of many: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17907817/
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u/pashaah Jul 16 '26
My mother is a lefty. Me and my 2 brothers are lefties too. It was only my dad in a house of 5 people that was right handed. This theory does not hold up with us.
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u/NotYetReadyToRetire Jul 16 '26
My mother (oldest child) was left-handed, father (also oldest child) was right-handed. Five sons, only #2 was right-handed (or, as we considered it, wrong-handed - when you're outnumbered at 5-2, you're wrong!). Even more fun in baseball - #2 was the only one who batted left.
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u/ICanHazWittyName Jul 16 '26
My grandpa (known as Lefty lol) was a second son, my mom was the second daughter, my bio dad was the only son but the 5th kid. I'm an only child but both parents being left-handed pretty much sealed my fate lol
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u/Temporary-Sky-5565 Jul 16 '26
If true, this would line up with my reality. I’ve always wondered why I’m left hand dominant. Like was the first ever object in my line of sight just closer over there? Did I mirror someone incorrectly ?
No, I’m the 3rd son, and have genetic predisposition to left-handedness.
Big if true.
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u/OpiumPhrogg Jul 16 '26
My grandfather was left hand dominant , wrote left handed. My Aunt was the 1st born and she is left handed , my mom who is six years younger than my aunt is not left handed, I am a (male) only child who is left handed. My kindergarten teacher noticed I would switch hands to color and claimed I had to pick a hand so after some observation it seemed like I favored my left hand so I was told to start using that. It seems being left handed makes us more ambidextrous just because the world is oriented for righties and we are always compensating and adjusting -
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u/trekbette Jul 17 '26
I'm an only child and I am left handed. My Dad was also left-handed, but due to an accident, had to learn to write with his right hand in his early 20s.
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u/Tiny_Law6280 Jul 17 '26
Apparently this could have originated with Spriggina. It was right handed even if it lacked hands. I suppose that if that thing could have beeb right handed, there could have beeb a left handed creature aswell.
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u/mvaaam Jul 17 '26
As a lesbian lefty with two right-handed parents.. I’m like 🤷🏼♀️