01The Gesture and Its Meaning
The high five is a celebration gesture where two people simultaneously raise one open hand and slap it against the other's. Often preceded verbally by 'Give me five' or 'High five!' Meanings vary: greeting, congratulation, victory, shared enthusiasm. Distinct from the fist bump (closed fists) and fist pump (single fist raised alone).
02Geography of Misunderstanding
The high five is now near-universal in sports, young professional and entertainment settings. No country treats it as offensive per se. However, in highly formal or hierarchical environments (some Asian business contexts, conservative Middle Eastern settings), it may feel out of place. During the COVID-19 pandemic (2020), it was stigmatised as a contagion vector, temporarily replaced by elbow bumps or air fives.
03Origins
(a) Documented facts
Convention assigns the invention to October 2, 1977, during the last MLB regular-season game: Glenn Burke, on deck, thrust his raised open hand toward Dusty Baker who had just hit his 30th home run — Baker slapped it without knowing why. SABR documents this episode. The term entered the Oxford English Dictionary as a noun in 1980, as a verb in 1981. The high five evolved from the 'low five', part of African-American culture since the 1920s.
(b) Competing claims
Wiley Brown and Derek Smith (Louisville Cardinals basketball, 1978-1979 season) claim independent invention. Magic Johnson claims he did it with Greg Kelser at Michigan State. These accounts coexist without definitive arbitration.
(c) What remains unknown
The exact transition from 'low five' to 'high five' is undated. Tokyo's Roppongi district adopted the slogan 'High Touch Town' — a possible transliteration of high-five — but local etymology remains uncertain.
04Glenn Burke and the LGBTQ+ Dimension
After retiring from baseball, Glenn Burke, one of the first openly gay professional athletes, popularised the high five in San Francisco's Castro district, making it a symbol of gay pride. Documented in ESPN 30 for 30: The High Five (dir. Michael Jacobs).
05Practical Recommendations
Offer spontaneously in a collective celebration context. In formal professional settings, wait for the other party to initiate. A high five with a superior may seem presumptuous in high power-distance cultures. When in doubt, a smile and nod are universally safe.
Geography of misunderstanding
Neutral
- usa
- canada
- uk
- australia
- new-zealand
- france
- belgium
- netherlands
- germany
- italy
- spain
- portugal
- brazil
- mexico
- argentina
- south-korea
- japan
- china-continental
Not documented
- middle-east
- sub-saharan-africa
- south-asia
- indigenous-peoples
Historical origins
Evolved from African-American 'low five' (1920s). Convention: Glenn Burke / Dusty Baker, LA Dodgers, Oct. 2, 1977 (SABR). OED noun 1980, verb 1981. Glenn Burke popularised in Castro SF as Gay Pride symbol. COVID-19 2020: stigmatisation then elbow-bump normalisation.
Practical recommendations
To do
- Initiez le high-five uniquement dans un contexte de célébration spontanée avec des personnes que vous connaissez. En milieu professionnel formel international, attendez que l'autre partie propose.
Neutral alternatives
Fist bump, handshake, applause, nod.