Wave goodbye to the antiquated handshake and say hello to the new standard formal greeting—the fist bump, sometimes referred to as brofist, respect knuckles, or hitting the rock.
When performed properly, the fist bump involves two people who form closed fists and bump the front of their fists together.
Darryl McCluskey, self-appointed official fist bump spokesperson explained, “There is no awkwardness to a fist bump. One fist strikes another, demonstrating solidarity, respect, and trust.”
McCluskey also highlighted what he called the “unknowns” of the common handshake, “You can encounter the ‘dead fish,’ a loose, flaccid embrace, or, conversely, the ‘jaws of life,’ a finger-crunching death grip. You can experience the ‘marathon shake’ that just won’t stop or the ‘pull my arm out of socket.’ My personal least favorite is when you encounter someone who has a ‘secret handshake,’ a choreographed and vigorous hand-dance that that leaves you unprepared and ashamed as their impromptu hand-dance-partner.”
The greeting originates in the late 1800s, first appearing in the boxing ring where boxers bumped gloves at the start of the match.
In the 1940s, the greeting began to appear in mainstream society when motorcyclists—greeting each other from the saddle with a fist bump, so as not to topple each other—and professional athletes adopted the fist bump. Despite this widespread exposure to fist bumping, the action still remained a bit edgy and elusive until June 3, 2008 when President Barack Obama and wife Michelle Obama engaged in what The Washington Post called “the fist bump heard ‘round the world” during a presidential campaign speech in St. Paul, Minnesota.
Following that exchange, government officials worldwide began to rap respect knuckles, exchanging fist bumps in greetings or congratulations instead of using the handshake.
Chim Richalds, mayor and fist-bump advocate, said, “As mayor, there is a constant need to adapt to the cultural progression of society. In doing so, I have found that the upcoming generation of business professionals largely have adopted more modern methods of communication in lieu of typical traditional approaches. For instance, the handshake, or what I refer to as the ‘hand hug,’ has been almost entirely replaced as a formal greeting by the much more efficient ‘fist bump.’ The fist bump is quick, edgy, and helps you to punctuate a dynamic meeting with the fireworks of a resounding ‘pow!’ Nothing says ‘let’s do business, friend’ quiet like the sharp knock of one associate’s knuckles against another’s.”
More recently, medical researchers have noted health benefits of using the fist bump over the handshake.
Researchers with West Virginia University have found that as much as 80 percent of individuals retain disease-causing bacteria even after washing their hands. Thus, they have concluded that the fist bump serves as a healthy alternative to the handshake to reduce bacterial transmission, given the decrease in overall surface area exposure, as well as contact time, comparatively.
Despite the popularity, this isn’t to say that first bumping doesn’t come without some risks. Be watchful of the zealous and over eager fist-bumper who exerts more force than necessary, threatening injury to one’s hand.
On other occasions you may run into the person who’s still stuck in the past, wanting to shake your hand instead, which leaves an awkward situation for both people involved.
McCluksey advised, “Above all, be yourself and don’t let the hand-shakers weasel their way into getting a handshake out of you. Be strong, stand up for the future, and follow your heart.”
Editor’s note: If you have made it this far in the article, we, the staff at Richland Source, would like to congratulate you and wish you a happy first day of April. Happy April Fool’s Day!
“There is no awkwardness to a fist bump. One fist strikes another, demonstrating solidarity, respect, and trust, ” said McCluskey
