# Why don't women whistle? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 4, 2017, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442 "2017-09-04T01:21:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![psychobunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/54ee81/32.png) [@psychobunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/psychobunny)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/21 "2017-09-04T07:27:29Z")
Well whenever I feel afraid, I hold my head erect and whistle a happy tune, so no one will suspect I’m afraid. (Sorry, just saw \*The King and I \*last week at the Kennedy Center). ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 10:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/22 "2017-09-04T10:30:06Z")
My mother had this earsplitting attention-getting whistle for calling kids home from a half mile away. To this day I can’t duplicate it. But, speaking more to the OP, I never hear women just whistling a tune for its own sake. More interestingly is why does any person do that at all? I notice sometimes I start whistling, and someone else in the vicinity will start at exactly the same time, as if to signal “Nonthreatening guy in the area.” I sometimes do that intentionally if I encounter a lone woman in a kind of sketchy space like an empty parking garage. ---
**Author:** ![JackieLikesVariety](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackielikesvariety/32/296_2.png) [@JackieLikesVariety](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JackieLikesVariety)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/23 "2017-09-04T12:13:20Z")
I like to whistle and do it often. I’m pretty good. I’m doing Theme to The Godfather right now. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/24 "2017-09-04T14:07:41Z")
The OP reminds me of a line in a classic football novel: _“If Negroes are so tough, how come you never see one on a motorcycle?”_ Male whistling preponderance is probably a thing, but in any event, we do NOT want to encourage more women to whistle as it is generally irritating to involuntary listeners (especially random tuneless whistling). ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/25 "2017-09-04T14:31:15Z")
The most memorable encounter I have of a woman whistling: She came up to me in a store and handed me card saying she was deaf and asked for a donation. I turned her down. She walked away whistling. Like I said. Memorable. ---
**Author:** ![JackieLikesVariety](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackielikesvariety/32/296_2.png) [@JackieLikesVariety](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JackieLikesVariety)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/26 "2017-09-04T14:50:03Z")
> [@](#): > > Male whistling preponderance is probably a thing, but in any event, we do NOT want to encourage more women to whistle as it is generally irritating to involuntary listeners (especially random tuneless whistling). we who? I encourage everyone of all genders, ages, whatever to whistle hum or sing anytime they feel like it. currently, I am whistling Funiculi Funicula 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![kayT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayt/32/3633_2.png) [@kayT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayT)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/27 "2017-09-04T15:30:48Z")
> [@JackieLikesVariety](#): > > we who? > > I encourage everyone of all genders, ages, whatever to whistle hum or sing anytime they feel like it. > > currently, I am whistling Funiculi Funicula 🆒 Thanks. And now, I too am whistling Funiculi Funicula. Thanks for that too.:rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/28 "2017-09-04T15:53:26Z")
> [@kayT](#): > > Oh, golly, no. No, I’ve been pretty bad most of my life. Is it that only bad girls whistle? Because if that’s it, well, then, I am giving credence to that theory. How _YOU_ doin’? _Ahem_ I meant are you any good at whistling? 😛 I’m whistling the “One Barrel Chase” sequence from the _Jaws_ soundtrack. It actually got me compliments in junior high school. Sadly, I never went pro. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/29 "2017-09-04T15:58:43Z")
As noted, lots of different types of people can whistle. It is a little bit of a rare skill in general these days. I can whistle the Andy Griffith theme song but so can my ex-wife. I am trying to teach my daughters to do it as well. I can also do a perfect imitation of a mourning dove call using only my hands and mouth (I used to have a disabled one as a pet). My crazy aunt can not only play the banjo, she can also play her hands like an instrument. She can squeeze out a Happy Birthday tune like it is the easiest thing in the world. I have never mastered the two-fingered high pitched whistle like some people use at big events but I have never noticed a sex split on that. All of those just take lots of practice and I don’t think there is a sex difference other than the fact that males are more likely to learn to do it (to impress women) but that is by no means universal. ’ ---
**Author:** ![MoonMoon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moonmoon/32/2959_2.png) [@MoonMoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MoonMoon)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/30 "2017-09-04T16:13:48Z")
Because it’s super annoying. Stop it. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/31 "2017-09-04T16:25:36Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > As noted, lots of different types of people can whistle. It is a little bit of a rare skill in general these days. > > I can whistle the Andy Griffith theme song but so can my ex-wife. I am trying to teach my daughters to do it as well. I can also do a perfect imitation of a mourning dove call using only my hands and mouth (I used to have a disabled one as a pet). > > My crazy aunt can not only play the banjo, she can also play her hands like an instrument. She can squeeze out a Happy Birthday tune like it is the easiest thing in the world. I have never mastered the two-fingered high pitched whistle like some people use at big events but I have never noticed a sex split on that. > > All of those just take lots of practice and I don’t think there is a sex difference other than the fact that males are more likely to learn to do it (to impress women) but that is by no means universal. > > ’ Can you and your ex whistle the harmony part in the middle? ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/32 "2017-09-04T17:56:28Z")
I recall reading one of the old James Bond novels in which Bond suspects that a man is gay because he is unable to whistle, and then he affirms his own masculinity by checking to see if he can still whistle. ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/33 "2017-09-04T18:02:49Z")
Because they’ll blow their ovaries out their nose. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/34 "2017-09-04T18:06:38Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > I recall reading one of the old James Bond novels in which Bond suspects that a man is gay because he is unable to whistle, and then he affirms his own masculinity by checking to see if he can still whistle. Good thing it’s whistling and not snapping your fingers, or else I’d be in trouble. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/35 "2017-09-04T21:56:30Z")
> [@JackieLikesVariety](#): > > we who? > > I encourage everyone of all genders, ages, whatever to whistle hum or sing anytime they feel like it. > > currently, I am whistling Funiculi Funicula 🆒 > [@kayT](#): > > Thanks. And now, I too am whistling Funiculi Funicula. Thanks for that too.:rolleyes: Marvin, Marvin, you’re a rotten kid Marvin, Marvin, you make me flip my lid Just go away, do what you’re told. You know your Mommy hates to scold. Stop chewing on your Teddy Bear, you’re 28 years old. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [September 4, 2017, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/36 "2017-09-04T22:18:52Z")
My wife whistles and carries a tune quite well. My mother couldn’t whistle a note if her life depended on it. She would make a noise like “Hoohoohoohoohoo” in an approximation of a tune, which was just weird. ---
**Author:** ![River\_Hippie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/river_hippie/32/26_2.png) [@River\_Hippie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/River_Hippie)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/37 "2017-09-05T01:07:54Z")
I work with a couple women that whistle. Horribly. I hate workplace (or anywhere you have a captive audience) whistlers. It’s a serious peeve of mine. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/38 "2017-09-05T03:17:38Z")
> [@wolfman](#): > > Because they’ll blow their ovaries out their nose. Thank you. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/39 "2017-09-05T03:25:53Z")
I’m a woman. I whistle. I whistle very well. I also sing very well. My father whistles very well. My siblings (all female) whistle well. We had a family whistle for when we got lost in a store or something. I have never heard my mother whistle, and she may not know how – she sings though. We are a family who sang around her piano. My husband cannot whistle and cannot sing on pitch. Neither can my daughter. I think these may be two separate things though. Our society is still much more tolerant of men being noisy and drawing attention to themselves in public. It can be dangerous for women to do so, in any case. There are probably a lot more women who just don’t whistle in public than can’t whistle. ---
**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\ **Post date:** [September 5, 2017, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442/40 "2017-09-05T04:08:41Z")
I’m a woman, and I whistle all the time. I started whistling “Whistle While You Work” as soon as I read the thread title. I’ve whistled many of the tunes mentioned in the thread as I read through it. I also love to whistle “non piu andrai,” although lately I’ve been whistling “la donna e mobile” since it’s being used in Groupon ads. I also sing, and probably sing more frequently than I whistle. I’m pretty sure that I can whistle almost any tune I know recognizably. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-women-whistle/795442.md?page=3)