Editor’s note: We consider it necessary to warn that dermatoglyphics has not yet been recognized as a science by the scientific community.
The skin that covers the inside of the palm has, as you know, a complex relief — it is formed by the so-called scallops, and therefore experts call this skin ridge. Combs make up characteristic patterns that are unique to each person and unchanged throughout his life. The science of dermatoglyphics deals with the study of the signs of these patterns, which should not be confused with the widely popular palmistry, for the former is no more related to the latter than astronomy is to astrology or chemistry to alchemy.
Palmistry, which studies the connection between capillary, and especially flexor (flexion) lines of the palm, its very structure with human properties, arose in ancient times. It was known to the Hindus, Chaldeans, Jews, Greeks and Romans. XVI-XVIII centuries — the heyday of palmistry in Europe. Many universities even had departments of palmistry. The connection between palmistry and astrology is indicated by the names of the «seven hills» in the palm of your hand — the Sun and six planets: Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Jupiter, the Moon and Mars. The «state of the hills» is taken into account by palmists in the same way as the three central lines — «life», «mind (head)» and «feelings (heart)».
Palmists claim that they can determine the main characterological traits of a person whose hand is being “read” — his hereditary inclinations, inclinations and attractions, strengths and weaknesses of the personality. On the basis of «read» one can allegedly see what has happened and what is to come. Usually they share chirognomania, that is, personality analysis, and palmistry proper as a prediction of the future. In practice, the two merge together.
Opinions about the reliability of palmistry are extremely controversial. To this day, a deep scientific analysis of its data has not been carried out. In the meantime, there are many who believe in it and many who do not, while in order for it to acquire scientific status, solid knowledge is needed on the basis of a large number of established correspondences.
As for dermatoglyphics, its roots go back to hoary antiquity. In one of the American museums there is an imprint of the thumb of a resident of Ancient China. The imprint was left on a clay jug over three thousand years ago. Most likely, the fingerprint is the seal of a potter. The ancient Indians, Babylonians, Assyrians replaced their signatures with fingerprints. Interestingly, in Sanskrit, the concepts of «seal» and «fingerprint» are homographs, that is, they are written the same way.
However, dermatoglyphics as a scientific discipline is quite young: its emergence dates back to 1892, when one of the most original natural scientists of his time — Charles Darwin’s cousin — Sir Francis Galton published his now classic work on finger patterns.
This date, however, is rather arbitrary. As early as the beginning of the XNUMXth century, descriptions of dermatoglyphic patterns were already found in the works of very authoritative anatomists, and at the beginning of the XNUMXth century, a fundamental classification of finger patterns appeared, created by the famous Czech researcher Jan Purkyne. Later, it was largely used by Galton, and then by the authors of the most common classification today — the Americans X. Cummins and C. Midlo.
And in 1880, two authors — G. Fulds and V. Herschel — published their reports on the possibility of identifying a person by fingerprints in the authoritative English scientific journal Nature («Nature»). One of them even suggested that Scotland Yard use this discovery, but was rejected. And yet, it is from this time that fingerprinting, which is so widely used today in forensic science, traces its history.
This circumstance is connected with the widespread in our country, but completely absurd opinion that obtaining fingerprints is a humiliating procedure and is permissible only in relation to criminals. Meanwhile, citizens of the United States, a country where fingerprinting is carried out for the entire population, see it not as a limitation, but, on the contrary, as a protection of their rights. Indeed, with its help, it is indeed easier to find a lost or stolen child or, say, convincingly prove your rights in case of loss of documents.
But these are, of course, applied aspects. It is much more interesting to know: what is behind the ridge patterns and how do they characterize this or that person? And such an approach is quite scientific, since the skin has a common source of origin with the structures of the nervous system and is quite closely connected with them. The results of dermatoglyphic studies are of considerable value for medicine: they are used in the diagnosis of many congenital brain diseases. But that’s not all. The role of the nervous system in regulating the functions of the human body is so great that one can even find a connection between the features of dermatoglyphics and many somatic (that is, purely bodily) diseases — peptic ulcer, diabetes mellitus, tuberculosis (isn’t this knowledge intuitively used by the most insightful fortune-tellers, predicting various sickness and disease?).
But can skin patterns give anything for understanding the character, temperament, and behavior of a person? According to the Russian psychiatrist Nikolai Bogdanov, this question can also be answered in the affirmative. The fact is that, despite all the individual originality of fingerprints, they are quite easy to classify within just three groups.
a) a typical arc — the rarest of the common finger patterns. Most often found on the index and middle fingers of the left hand.
b) the most common of the finger patterns is a typical loop. Always accompanied by one so-called «delta» (in this case, to the left of the loop).
c) a typical curl is always accompanied by two «deltas» (in the photo — to the left and right of the curl). It is more common on the index and ring fingers of the right hand.
The most common of the finger patterns are the so-called ulnar loops, curls are slightly less common, and the most rare are simple arcs. On the basis of these dermatoglyphic features, which, according to experts, reflect the individual organization of the human nervous system, one can make assumptions about its features, and, consequently, about human behavior.
Statistics show that those whose finger patterns are dominated by arcs are distinguished by purely concrete thinking. They are distinguished by a formal view of the world, they are not prone to creative manifestations, in the sense that they are not inclined to bring a lot of their own. These people are sufficiently unambiguous and purposeful, it is difficult for them to adapt to changes in the environment and listen to the opinions of other people. They are truthful, frank, do not like behind-the-scenes intrigues, they easily “cut the truth-womb”. Long journeys in transport can be difficult for them, and they often do not tolerate heat well, many try to avoid alcohol, which does not cause them pleasant relaxation. Such people may experience adverse reactions to drugs, especially those that affect the psyche — tranquilizers, antiallergic drugs. In general, we can say that the health of these people is rather fragile, and that is probably why there are few of them in our society. In life, however, they are able to give the impression of real «rams», but mainly for the reason that they simply have nowhere to retreat. People around them prefer to shy away from conflicts with them, because they quickly learn their meaninglessness: such people do not learn either from their own mistakes or from others. Often people of this type are knocked out in all kinds of bosses.
At the first meeting, the owner of a large number of arcs can give the impression of a very smart person, because he speaks weightily, specifically and simply enough, but … If your communication continues, you risk getting into a very unpleasant situation when, thanks to your experience, professional training or for some for other reasons, you cannot agree with the interlocutor. And here you are in a trap, because no matter how much you convince the opposite side, you still won’t be able to convince it! The irritation from this can be so great that you are already ready to deny a person any virtues.
Quite different is the case with curls. Those whose fingers are dominated by such patterns are characterized by diverse and very complex behavior. They often have little idea of what they are capable of. But the realization of their abilities depends mainly on motivation, and if motivation is absent (as, unfortunately, most often happens), then there are no special achievements. Despite their colossal endurance, people of this type do not like (and it seems to them that they cannot) tolerate circumstances that are unpleasant for themselves. But at the same time, they are constantly — to one degree or another — dissatisfied with themselves, prone to introspection, to painful doubts. It can be very difficult for them to complete the work they have begun, for example, due to the fact that, having found the thread of solving the problem, they may lose all interest in it. Or they cannot choose which of the many solutions to prefer. In contrast to the owners of other drawings on the fingers, such people can experience purely childish joy from some kind of behind-the-scenes maneuvers. And the most amazing thing is that they do this not for the sake of achieving selfish goals, but solely wanting to enhance the diversity and sharpness of life impressions with the help of a game environment. Those who have curls cannot match the speed of reaction with those who have an arc pattern, but they greatly benefit in coordination of movements.
People with a predominance of loop patterns on their fingers are a kind of “golden mean” between the two described above. They usually have a fairly wide range of interests, although they do not have the same tension and depth as people with curls, nor the unambiguity and specificity that some people like, but annoying others, like people with arcs. The owners of the loops easily converge with others, tolerate any oddities, while quite adequately assessing what is happening. They are ready to participate in undertakings, neither the benefit nor the intention of which they share or even understand. With all their “pluses” and “minuses”, these are ideal leaders, capable of satisfying everyone, albeit at a minimum. Moreover, they do not put pressure on those around them (as people with arcs do) and do not torment anyone with ephemeral and constantly changing plans (as the owners of curls). The owners of loops on all fingers are the most sociable, tolerant, friendly, understanding. In the service of such will undertake any work; at school, he will listen to the teacher when necessary, and indulge when everyone is “on their ears”; on a hike, he will sing to the guitar (no need to persuade for a long time) and will cope with duty after a difficult transition. If something is wrong with such a person, it means that either there are serious troubles at home, or others have exhausted their patience with unfounded claims.
All these characteristics, of course, are not absolute and are very generalized. Especially when you consider that people with a predominance of one type of finger patterns are not particularly common. In fact, it is important not only that a person has this or that pattern, but also on which finger and which hand it is located. The subtle topography of dermatoglyphic features is somehow related to the peculiarities of the fine organization of different areas of the brain. Loops, as already mentioned, are the most common pattern, and the features of their localization are not so important. As for curls, they, like patterns of higher complexity, are most often located on the fingers of the right hand, and mainly on the index and ring fingers. This is the norm, close enough to the loops. But if the asymmetry in the distribution of patterns of varying complexity exceeds two signs, then such a person is likely to be highly unbalanced. When curls are noted mainly on the right hand, then he is quick-tempered, but quick-tempered, however, the greater the asymmetry, the less quick-tempered. If the picture is the opposite, which, by the way, happens much less often, then such people are more likely to digest everything in themselves, and this gives a person a great originality, because he can hide resentment for an extremely long time, and who knows when and how she suddenly reminds of herself. Such people are vulnerable and secretive, and it happens that they are even vindictive and vengeful. Once they have ideas, it is extremely difficult to leave them. But at the same time they are artistic, sometimes musical or have the ability to draw. They do not tolerate alcohol well and can become aggressive under its influence.
The owner of a single curl on the thumb of his right hand can harass those around him with lengthy arguments on a variety of issues (what experts call reasoning). In stressful situations, when it is necessary to quickly make an important decision, or even just with an emotional conversation in a raised voice, he can completely lose his bearings and do things that seem to be in no way consistent with his experience, level of intelligence.
And if this single curl is located on the index finger of the left hand, while on the same finger of the right hand there is a loop, then we have a hereditary left-hander. There are legends about lefties, but such a person is far from always different from the rest by some peculiarities of thinking and behavior.
Finger patterns do not exhaust the area of application of dermatoglyphics, because there is also ridge skin on the palms. True, patterns such as arcs, loops and curls are very rare here. The people who possess them are a certain mystery. More often than others, they are found among patients of neuropsychiatric clinics, but perhaps this is a retribution for some unique abilities?
The proximity of dermatoglyphic patterns in married couples can be considered an extremely interesting phenomenon. If one of the spouses has rare patterns on the palms, then they are most often noted on the other side. It is interesting that the owners of rare patterns still find each other, no matter how rare these signs are. The only exceptions are people with an arc pattern, who never connect with each other. The owner of the arcs, as a rule, unites in an alliance with the owner of the curls and, as a rule, leads in a married couple.
The amazing and not yet fully explained connection between skin patterns and the individual characteristics of the nervous system already allows, as a result of careful observation, to give some estimates of human character and behavior. But to an even greater extent, this connection gives rise to reflection and further research.