# What country has the highest percentage of left-handed people? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 4, 2018, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-highest-percentage-of-left-handed-people/820758 "2018-09-04T18:58:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2018, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-highest-percentage-of-left-handed-people/820758/1 "2018-09-04T18:58:02Z")
Just curious. ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2018, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-highest-percentage-of-left-handed-people/820758/2 "2018-09-04T19:16:29Z")
Cultures that do not have a stigma against left-handed people tend to top out at about 12 percent lefties. This includes North America and Western Europe. None of these countries seems to be statistically significantly above the others in left-handedness. On the other hand, cultures that have an intolerance of lefties are much lower. Korea is 2 percent, for example, and Japan 3 percent. More info here: Handedness Statistics > **[Right, Left, Right, Wrong! - Handedness Statistics](http://www.rightleftrightwrong.com/statistics.html)** > > Right, Left, Right, Wrong! - Handedness Statistics ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2018, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-highest-percentage-of-left-handed-people/820758/3 "2018-09-04T19:20:17Z")
[This site](https://leftyfretz.com/how-many-people-are-left-handed/) says the Netherlands is at the top at 13.23%. But it uses mixed sources (only one of which is even named) and there is no mention of error bar, so I suspect the US and western Europe are all similarly high, as **engineer\_comp\_geek** said. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2018, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-highest-percentage-of-left-handed-people/820758/4 "2018-09-04T20:02:58Z")
We could reasonably expect the percentage to rise slightly in western countries as people who were forcibly “righted” (a practice that lasted well into the 1960s in some regions) in their youth die off. As a lefty myself, I’m glad to have (barely) missed out on this bullshit. ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2018, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-highest-percentage-of-left-handed-people/820758/5 "2018-09-04T20:15:03Z")
Another issue is I don’t believe that handedness is binary. Personally I’m about as right handed as a person could be. I can do almost nothing with my left. My wife can do most things with both hands. Some she does better righty some lefty. ---
**Author:** ![Kron](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kron/32/12444_2.png) [@Kron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kron)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2018, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-highest-percentage-of-left-handed-people/820758/6 "2018-09-04T20:15:21Z")
They tried “righting” me in kindergarten ('86-'87), until my parents found out about it. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2018, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-highest-percentage-of-left-handed-people/820758/7 "2018-09-04T20:55:36Z")
> [@OldGuy](#): > > Another issue is I don’t believe that handedness is binary. Personally I’m about as right handed as a person could be. I can do almost nothing with my left. My wife can do most things with both hands. Some she does better righty some lefty. It isn’t binary, but very few people are truly ambidextrous. Does your wife, if she stops to think about it, have a preference? They turned my father from left-handed to right-handed and he ended up being equally bad with both hands. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2018, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-highest-percentage-of-left-handed-people/820758/8 "2018-09-04T21:58:26Z")
I’d give my right arm to be ambidextrous… Sorry - couldn’t resist. ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2018, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-highest-percentage-of-left-handed-people/820758/9 "2018-09-05T00:18:44Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > It isn’t binary, but very few people are truly ambidextrous. Does your wife, if she stops to think about it, have a preference? I believe I answered that in my original post. She does some things better right-handed, others left handed. ---
**Author:** ![septimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/septimus/32/410_2.png) [@septimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/septimus)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2018, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-highest-percentage-of-left-handed-people/820758/10 "2018-09-05T01:19:04Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > They turned my father from left-handed to right-handed and he ended up being equally bad with both hands. I was also forcibly switched. My right hand is rather clumsy now, but my left is much much worse. Curiously, there are a few things I still do the way most lefties do: play cards, cross arms, fold hands. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Mondegreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/91b2a8/32.png) [@Lord\_Mondegreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Mondegreen)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2018, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-highest-percentage-of-left-handed-people/820758/11 "2018-09-05T02:01:25Z")
Not the question asked, but as an industry, IT seems to have a way higher percentage of left handers than the general population. Even removing myself from the calculation, I’m frequently in meetings where at least half of those present are lefties. Of course there could be some confirmation bias involved. ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2018, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-highest-percentage-of-left-handed-people/820758/12 "2018-09-05T03:46:10Z")
I worked in a lab where most of the people were left handed; the righties had no idea why some tasks were so weirdly difficult for them until someone took pity on them and explained every was set up for lefties. Some argued that the lab should still be set up for righties, because lefts are used to being uncomfortable. ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2018, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-highest-percentage-of-left-handed-people/820758/13 "2018-09-05T04:19:41Z")
> [@j666](#): > > Some argued that the lab should still be set up for righties, because lefts are used to being uncomfortable. So who is doing the complaining? Us Lefties realize we are outnumbered, and adjust accordingly. Besides, greatness is confined to a distinct minority. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2018, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-highest-percentage-of-left-handed-people/820758/14 "2018-09-05T04:24:24Z")
> [@OldGuy](#): > > I believe I answered that in my original post. She does some things better right-handed, others left handed. It’s called “Cross-dominance”: > **[Cross-dominance](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross-dominance)** > > Cross-dominance, also known as mixed-handedness, hand confusion, or mixed dominance, is a motor skill manifestation in which a person favors one hand for some tasks and the other hand for others, or a hand and the contralateral leg. For example, a cross-dominant person might write with the left hand and do everything else with the right one, or manage and kick a ball preferentially with the left leg. > Overall, being mixed handed seems to result in better performance than being strongly handed fo... I’m like that. Somethings I do left-handed, somethings right handed. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2018, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-highest-percentage-of-left-handed-people/820758/15 "2018-09-05T04:28:09Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > It isn’t binary, but very few people are truly ambidextrous. Does your wife, if she stops to think about it, have a preference?. It’s the other way around for me. When I’m doing something with my hands, like cooking, I’m always conscious which hand I’m using, because hand choice is rarely automatic. I can do two different things at once, like stir one pot while pouring something into another pot, or stir two pots at once, in different directions. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2018, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-country-has-the-highest-percentage-of-left-handed-people/820758/16 "2018-09-05T04:32:05Z")
I would venture to guess that it would be some micro-nation. 1. With a population of 4, it’s easy to max the scale out. 2. Leftyism is correlated with creativity, and creative/artsy types are more likely to start their own micro-nation. 3. Handedness is hereditary. (See also, point 1.)