What's In A Handshake? President Trump And Chancellor Merkel

Of course, by now, President Trump is defending himself; saying he DID shake Chancellor Merkel's hand previously, and he was unaware he was 'supposed to do it again on camera'.

OK, I can buy that. In fact, I'm thinking his facial expression in the video clip seems to exhibit a measure of 'confusion'...which is understandable if he was not aware he was supposed to be doing something other than what he was already doing.


So...what's really in a handshake, anyway?

The handshake, according to Wikipedia, is an old ritual which was apparently begun about 500 years before the time of Jesus (500 BC) in ancient Greece.

Some authorities link the handshake with a need for ensuring each other that neither was holding onto weapons with their 'primary' (right) hand.

Over time, the handshake has evolved, and today we do not generally think of weapons or similar dangers when offering our hand for a handshake. 

Instead, we generally consider the handshake as a means for sharing introductory, celebratory, congratulatory, and otherwise positive things with others, right?

But wait...there's more!

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Editor's update 4/12/17: Revised title and other references to "Prime Minister", as Angela Merkel's title is "Chancellor" of Germany.