The Handshake Rules and Etiquette in North America and Other Countries and Cultures.

In North America and Europe, extend a hand upon meeting and parting, and make your handshake firm to show your strength and recognize and respect others.
When doing business in all countries respect the culture and religious difference of the individual when you greet them. For example, American Orthodox Jews are not supposed to shake hands, some men will if they are pressured too, but it is not polite to force them.
In the Middle East and Asia and India, use a gentle grip to show respect a firm handshake implies you don’t trust the other person and need to check for weapons.
While in the North America men can now offer their hand to a women, men in many cultures will wait for a woman to extend her hand first, which is permissible for any man to do.
If you are in an Islamic country, if you are a woman don’t offer your hand to a man and whether you are a male or female don’t offer your hand to a woman.
Some Muslim women doing business in the US will offer their hands for you to shake.


Patti Wood, MA, Certified Speaking Professional - The Body Language Expert. For more body language insights go to her website at http://PattiWood.net. Also check out the body language quiz on her YouTube Channel at http://youtube.com/user/bodylanguageexpert.

The real origin of the handshake

Why do we shake hands with people? Well today on MSM front page ever day mysteries wrote today that the origin of the handshake ,"...lies in medieval history. By offering a right hand to a stranger, a hand that could otherwise be used to draw a sword, men were overtly displaying their intentions of peace toward one another. " But that is not accurate.The real origin of the handshake started not in medieval times but in Roman times. Romans clasped arms to show I hold not weapon. It was the medieval nights who made the shift from arm clasping to hand clasping and later to the shaking, but the shaking part of the handshake originated because of a trick of some medieval nights of hiding weapons up in their sleeve. So when Knights went to grab hands they started shaking the other guys hands so if there where any hidden weapons hidden in the sleeves of their potential opponent they would fall out during the "shake down.
At that point handshakes became weapons checks.

Nowadays, from signing a treaty to settling a bet with friends, "shaking on it" remains a symbolic sign of agreement.
For more about the handshake check out my book on my website. www.pattiwood.net