Why do people shake hands when they greet each other?

Answer 1

Because it's a way for each person to acknowledge the other.

AnswerShaking hands starts back in the early 1800s and was as good as a written contract for a promise or a deal. Men in those days NEVER shook hands with a woman (would either bow or kiss the top of her hand when she extended it.) With women in these modern times plying for a position in the man's business world it is now acceptable for a man to shake hands with a woman. To tell you the truth it bothers me if I just meet a male person and they insist on a hand shake and a nod of acknowledgement would have been perfect. When in a business deal I have no problems with a solid hand shake.

Also noted that years ago the strengths of a good solid hand shake in comparison to a weak one was to show the character of that man. Strong hand shake ... you could trust the man ... weak one, he was weak in character and not to be trusted.

Also worth pondering on, or considering as a reason...

85-92% of the population are Right Handed, and hand shakes are made with the right hand. In order to shake hands both persons have to have "empty hands". So it is also a way to show to the person one is shaking hands with that your right hand (the one you would be most likely to have a weapon in, as most people are right handed) is empty.

In other words it is a way to show that you are not holding a weapon in your strongest hand- "Here is my fighting hand, it is empty, feel it."