Hand signs
 

I'm sure this topic has been addressed but I couldn't find it. I know we've had our hand sign (the diamond) for decades and I remember Theta having one also when I was in college 20 years ago...and maybe Tridelt too. Has everyone always had one or are some of them kind of new? Seems like every group has one now and I don't remember that back in my day. Just curious :D

I don't remember anyone outside the Divine Nine having hand signs back in my day (30 years ago). If any NPC orgs did have them, then I have to think they weren't commonly used where I was. I had never seen any of them prior to Greek Chat.

We didn't have them when I was in college. (20ish years ago)

I was a regional officer back about 13-14 years ago. I noticed that at campuses with a big Divine 9 presence, NPC chapters were beginning to use hand signs. Those at campuses with a small Divine 9 presence, no.
So hand signs are very recent.
In that job, I did a LOT of reading - constantly - of various handbooks, and discovered that Delta Gamma has an official whistle and even an official signal with your handkerchief. I doubt that hand signs have been officially recognized, but ways to note your membership or recognize sisters go back 100+ years!

Love the hankerchief sign! Can it be shared or is it secret?

Based on the reading I've done, whistles and calls were once very common for both sororities and fraternities. I think most if not all groups had them, and may still, even if they're not used much anymore.

Kappa has a whistle. I couldn't whistle it, but I know there is such a thing.

What is the divine nine?

Divine nine = NPHC.

I doubt it or the whistle is secret - it was in a non-secret officers handbook. I don't remember the handkerchief signa exactly...it was something about how and where you held it to your face.

LOL at somebody doing that today. My mom left me several very pretty handkerchiefs, elaborately embroidered or festooned with lace, and thinner than Kleenex, with orders to use them at her funeral instead of tacky Kleenex. At the time, though, it was the last thing on my mind.
I'm sorry, Mom.

You're correct - I remember reading that along with the explanations.

Here are some of the whistles:

http://a.yfrog.com/img612/6332/ycda.png

^I was going to say that I once posted an old page of whistles!


We did the <> when I was in school, and as far as I know, we were the only ones with a handsign.

For Alpha Phi Omega, the hand sign is official, it is the same as the Boy Scout sign (right hand, thumb joined to pinky, other fingers straight.)

In what context would you use that?

I think there may be various things that can be meant by "handsigns." It seems to me that handsigns can be broken down into three different kinds of signs:

1. Handsigns made in photos or similar situations that serve simply to say "we are members of ΑΒΓ";
2. Signs made only in a ritual context with ritual meaning; and
3. Recognition signs used to quietly identify other members, similar to a challenge and response.

It seems to me that in this thread we've mainly been talking about the first category. Obviously we wouldn't know about the second category for any GLO but our own, and the third category would also likely be secret (if still used). I'm guessing that whistles also originally functioned like the third category of handsign. (You can see in the chart above that some whistles actually have challenges and answers.)

I wouldn't be surprised of lots of GLOs have signs of the second and third kind, though in these days when it's easier to identify members in other ways, those of the third kind may have fallen out of use. It's those of the first kind that I think have only fairly recently been appearing outside the Divine Nine, and I would guess it is a Divine Nine influence that has given rise to them elsewhere.

I love the whistles--i've never seen that!

It was in one of our publications - maybe Sisters? Did you note the "Alpha Delta Phi"?!

I used to have the first Sisters but I think I lost it in one of our many moves...I really need to get them again.
I love the Phi!
Does it say what campus this was from?

There are a couple of interesting things about that chart.

First, Phi Beta Kappa (which wasn't always an honor society) is included. Second, so is Theta Nu Epsilon, which has always been a class society, not a fraternity as such.

But the other thing I noticed is Alpha Delta Phi. The badge of Alpha Delta Phi fraternity is not shown on the chart, but if all badges are matched with the fraternity or sorority, there is one diamond badge (other than SAE and Fiji) left over, and I think it's ADPi's badge.

So, that would mean this chart dates from between 1905, when the Adelphian Society went national and changed its name to Alpha Delta Phi, and 1913, when the name was changed again to Alpha Delta Pi. And that would mean that the last whistle shown was/is ADPi's.

ETA: And I see that while I was typing this, honeychile also pointed out the ADPhi = ADPi bit. Guess that means my guess was right. :)

Most of my books are still packed, so I'm not sure. It may have been in one of the Loyally volumes, too. But as MysticCat has so kindly pointed out, it had to be a chapter between 1905-1913.

And one not at an all-female school, so based on the time-line at The Wiki, that would seem to narrow it to just four possibilities -- Delta (Texas, 1906), Epsilon (Sophie Newcomb College of Tulane, 1906), Upsilon (Washington State, 1912) or Tau (Kansas, 1912).

Given that Kappa Alpha Order is also on the chart, I think that would further narrow it down to Tulane or Texas. And since Zeta Tau Alpha chartered at Texas in 1906 (the same year as ADPi) and didn't charter at Tulane until 1927, I'm going with Texas.

Theta Phi Alpha's sign is made of three fingers on each hand forming the letter "theta." I have a feeling it's not that old, but is lately appearing all over TSM and Pinterest as "our" sign. :)

For years, (certainly back to the 1970s) Chi Omegas posed for pictures like this, but of course that takes 2 people to perform! I'd say the handsigns for Chi Omega (with just the fingers) have occurred in the last 5 years.

This pic is from 2000:
http://i829.photobucket.com/albums/z...Pi2000_NEW.jpg

I know of several sororities which have ritual hand signs. I also know the Gamma Phi whistle.

Definitely *not* # 3, among other uses, the Sign is made when someone is being installed into an elected office at any level and for most elected offices above the chapter level, that tends to be done at conference banquets where guests, wait staff, etc. are likely to see it. (While our officer installation is in the ritual book, it is not a private ritual) We also have a private fraternity handshake.

For #2, definitely not only in a ritual context, though certainly used there as well...

For #1, certainly *can* be done that way. If you were asking for the organizational pictures in the yearbook for the signs to be made, that is certainly the one that brothers would use. And I do see it used "socially", just not to the level that you see some other groups using it.

And while the chapters at the HBCUs are more likely to use the sign socially because of the influence of the NPHC signs, the use of that sign dates back to well before our first chapters at an HBCU. (Trying to figure out when and where the first school with both an NPHC chapter and an Alpha Phi Omega chapter would be difficult)

Alpha Phi Omega in the Philippines are also more likely to use the hand sign for various cultural reasons.

Nutbrown--THAT'S the Chi Omega sign I remember from 20 years ago.

Great detective work on figuring out the whistles--I'm going with Texas too!

I know ours has been around since at least the early 80's.......http://im1.shutterfly.com/media/47a2...D550/ry%3D400/

I've seen some new Sigma handsigns. Usually we just did the sigma with our pointer and thumb, but I've seen some chapters making the triangle with their hands. I guess that would be okay in places that don't have a Tri Delta chapter since it looks like a delta. I kind of like it for more formal occasions such as with badge attire since I usually associate the sigma with just plain hanging out with my sisters. Anyone else seen this?

Are the whistles similar to knocks?

No, because as indicated by the chart up thread, generally whistles are not secret and can be used (to the extent they are used at all anymore) in public.

The hand signal currently fashionable within my NPC group is something I learned long ago as a pledge. It's not something we commonly used until recent popularity of NPC groups publicly throwing handsigns.

When viewing recently-posted Bid Day and NM Class photos, I notice a few NPC handsignals appear similar when photographed from afar (from not-in-closeup mode).

http://yaledailynews.com/blog/2013/0...itment-period/

A pic is with this article ^^. Nearly everyone seems to be doing a hand sign (?). Looks / looked odd to me. I'm still not entirely sure what it's all about, but I'm sure it's just great.

They are making theta's with their mouths. Looks strange to me.

Sigh.... yes, they are making the Theta sign. Many of us older alumnae really dislike this, me included. Really does not look lady-like at all. Please stick with the kite, ladies!

I also like the large 2-person kite with a third person sticking her head out the middle. I probably didn't describe it well, but it looks cute. My significant other's cousin is a Theta alum, and she's at that age where her friends are getting married every other month, so she's always posting pictures from weddings where she & her Theta sisters are making kite hands.

The "Sailor Salute," "Popping the Gamma," "DG Salute," whatever you want to call it is popular in DG photos these days. I think it started with one of the Florida chapters in the past 10 years or so (I pledged 10 years ago, and it was just starting to get noticed...now it's in almost all DG group shots!). Here is what we are going for:

http://media-cache-lt0.pinterest.com...rMbUnVkD_c.jpg

This is the only handsign for an NPC group that I like. I think most of them look silly and try hard. But what do I know? I'm old.

DG hand sign
 

Thank you, amiblue!

I like our diamond. Simple and cute.

I see lots of photos online where NPC sorority women will get a celebrity or famous person to pose doing their hand-sign. This is odd to me, because for my org. and most other NALFO orgs., it is highly inappropriate to allow someone to do your hand-sign in your presence.

Isn't that decades old? I swear I've seen vintage pics with it too.

And lord the backlash when it does happen, like MediaTakeOut seeing the following picture and running it as a story:

Waka Flocka with the Alphas

http://a1.img.mobypicture.com/815474...981c4_view.jpg

Waka Flocka with the Kappas

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_sck8jn3Y0j..._8216430_n.jpg

Please note, we do not like this generally.