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Ahead shake is agesture in which the head is turned left and right along thetransverse plane repeatedly in quick succession. In many cultures, it is most commonly,[1] but not universally, used to indicate disagreement,denial, or rejection. It can also signify disapproval or upset at a situation, often with slower movement. Head shaking while trying food, inWestern cultures, can also communicate one is enjoying the food or a strong approval of it.
Different cultures assign different meanings to the gesture. Shaking to indicate "no" is widespread, and appears in a large number of diverse cultural andlinguistic groups. Areas in which head shaking generally takes this meaning include theIndian subcontinent, theMiddle East,Africa,Southeast Asia,Europe,South America,North America andAustralia.
However, in someSoutheastern European areas such asBulgaria[2] and southernAlbania, it is used for the opposite purpose, to indicate affirmation, meaning "yes". In those regions, nodding in fact means "no", the complete reverse of most other places in the world.[3]
There are varying theories as to why head shake is so frequently used to mean "no". It has been stated[4] thatbabies, when hungry, search for their mother's milk by moving their heads vertically, but decline milk by turning their head from side to side.
An early survey of head shake and other gestures wasThe Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals, written byCharles Darwin in 1872. Darwin wrote tomissionaries in many parts of the world asking for information on local gestures, and concluded that shaking head for "no" was common to many different groups.[5]
