By K J Foxhall 
Witch, witch, you’re a witch! The left handed discernment…or lack thereof.
What was so bad about being left-handed? Even today there are still some who think that being left-handed is abnormal. I hope we are beyond the times of thinking that left-handedness is demonic, unlucky and even a result of witchcraft.
If you are left handed like I am, you may have heard ‘it is a right handed world’, or ‘you can’t do that you are left handed.’ Now being left handed is widely accepted, but in this episode we look at the history of the superstition and human behaviour, physiology and how the brain is wired.
A Brief History of Getting It Wrong
Discernment — the ability to judge well — has historically been in short supply when it comes to left-handedness. As a left-hander myself, I’m well acquainted with the phrase “it’s a right-handed world.” Mildly irritating today, but consider the alternative: in the Middle Ages, being left-handed could see you tried for witchcraft. Certain criminologists in the 1900s went so far as to link left-handedness with criminal behaviour or psychological disorder. The common thread across all of it is the same one that runs through so many areas of human history — if something isn’t in the majority, it gets treated as abnormal.
This came sharply into focus recently when my daughter started cello lessons. When I raised the possibility of a left-handed instrument, the teacher’s response was simply: she’ll just get used to it. That kind of thinking belongs in Salem. A teacher’s primary job is to help a student learn — and that requires adaptability, not the other way around.
Suppression Across Generations
The impulse to “correct” left-handedness is surprisingly recent. My mother — also left-handed — had her own mother try to force her to use her right hand, before eventually giving up. I know colleagues fifteen years younger than me who were actively discouraged from using their left hand as children because it wasn’t considered normal. A family member told me that her mother once smacked my brother-in-law’s hand simply for reaching for a biscuit with his left hand.
This mirrors what happened with autism: numbers of diagnoses appeared low for decades not because fewer people were autistic, but because people were told to suppress it. As acceptance grows, so do the numbers — because people feel safe enough to come forward.
The Brain Science
There’s a well-known saying that left-handed people are the only ones in their right minds — a nod to the fact that we’re cross-wired. The right side of the brain controls the left side of the body, and vice versa.
Scientists at the University of Oxford found that the brains of left-handed people are wired differently, with the two hemispheres better connected and more coordinated — particularly in areas related to language. Interestingly, despite this, I’ve always struggled to learn languages, despite having no difficulty with law, psychology, or other complex fields. Chris McManus, author of Right Hand, Left Hand and a researcher at University College London, suggests that this unusual brain organisation can give left-handers skills that others don’t have — adaptability being a prime example.
Left-handers are often said to be more creative, with strengths in art and music. There’s certainly evidence of it anecdotally, but not enough research to state it conclusively. What is clear is that left-handers vary enormously — some are highly ambidextrous, others are what one person I met memorably called “pure bred” left-handers, unable to do much of anything with their right hand at all.
Famous Left-Handers
The list is long and varied, which rather makes the point that left-handedness cuts across every background and era: Aristotle, Leonardo da Vinci, Napoleon, Barack Obama, Oprah Winfrey, Bill Gates, Angelina Jolie, Lady Gaga, and Babe Ruth, among many others. No pattern, no profile — anyone can be left-handed.
And it’s not even exclusively human. Kangaroos and parrots show a preference for their left side when eating and grooming. The 50/50 split seen in humans is also observed in apes.
A Sociological Problem, Not a Biological One
The stigma around left-handedness has never really been about left-handedness itself — it’s been about society’s discomfort with anything outside the norm. The same dynamic appears in attitudes toward neurodiversity, religion, culture, and countless other areas. As acceptance grows, understanding follows.
For a lighter take on all of this, it’s worth recalling Ned Flanders’ Leftorium from The Simpsons — a shop dedicated entirely to left-handed products. Initially met with indifference, it only took off once people actually showed up. A small but pointed illustration of how societal acceptance shapes everything.
The conclusion is straightforward: left-handed, right-handed — it’s all normal. No one should be shamed for it, excluded because of it, or told to simply get used to a world that wasn’t designed with them in mind.
Sources:
Left-Handers Day: Amazing facts about lefties, BBC
How Lefties First Gained Acceptance, Time
Editor