# Is left-handedness more common in cultures where language is written right to left? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 18, 2007, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-left-handedness-more-common-in-cultures-where-language-is-written-right-to-left/392689 "2007-02-18T06:53:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2007, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-left-handedness-more-common-in-cultures-where-language-is-written-right-to-left/392689/21 "2007-02-19T15:13:31Z")
[QUOTE=Cagey Drifter] I do not know of any Indian languages that are right-to-left, but there are so many scripts that there’s bound to be one… maybe? [/QUOTE] I just checked. Urdu is right-to-left, since it is written with the Arabic alphabet. It would be weird if they wrote “backwards” from other languages using that alphabet. In addition to Pakistan, Urdu is one of India’s 23 official languages and is spoken in areas where there is a Muslim majority, or in cities which were traditionally Muslim strongholds in the past. Written, I suppose I should say, since Urdu and Hindi are the same spoken language, considered separate for cultural reasons. ---
**Author:** ![ratatoskK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ratatoskk/32/2987_2.png) [@ratatoskK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ratatoskK)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2007, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-left-handedness-more-common-in-cultures-where-language-is-written-right-to-left/392689/22 "2007-02-19T15:19:29Z")
You might find this book interesting: [Right Hand, Left Hand](http://www.amazon.com/Right-Hand-Left-Asymmetry-Cultures/dp/0674016130/sr=1-5/qid=1171898302/ref=sr_1_5/002-4067218-3056832?ie=UTF8&s=books) byt Chris McManus. ---
**Author:** ![Sleel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/73ab20/32.png) [@Sleel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleel)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2007, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-left-handedness-more-common-in-cultures-where-language-is-written-right-to-left/392689/23 "2007-02-20T00:40:49Z")
[QUOTE=Sleel] . . .Japanese in vertical script is written left to right . . . [/QUOTE] Crap, this is backwards. I meant to say **right** to **left**. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2007, 1:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-left-handedness-more-common-in-cultures-where-language-is-written-right-to-left/392689/24 "2007-02-20T01:08:36Z")
[QUOTE=Cagey Drifter] In India, for example, using your left hand for anything but wiping yourself is unconscionable. [/QUOTE] Really? So they dress themselves with one hand, drive with one hand, farm crops with one hand, play sports with one hand, etc.? And left-handed people are banished to distant lands? Since this is President’s Day in the U.S., I’ll mention that five of the last ten U.S. presidents have been left-handed (Truman, Nixon, Ford, Bush, Clinton). ---
**Author:** ![lizardling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f4b2a3/32.png) [@lizardling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lizardling)\ **Post date:** [February 20, 2007, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-left-handedness-more-common-in-cultures-where-language-is-written-right-to-left/392689/25 "2007-02-20T01:44:15Z")
Family’s from Indonesia. My sister and I are natural lefties. It’s recently come to light that my brother used to be right-handed, courtesy of some home videos of us eating as wee toddlers. Apparently, he switched himself to be Just Like Zee Big Sisters. 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-left-handedness-more-common-in-cultures-where-language-is-written-right-to-left/392689.md?page=1)