Dactylology

/ˌdæktɪliˈɒlədʒi/ noun

Definition

The study of fingers and their uses, including finger anatomy, fingerprinting, and the sign language used by deaf communities.

Etymology

From Greek daktylos (finger) + logia (study of). Developed in the 19th century encompassing medical, forensic, and linguistic aspects of finger use and anatomy.

Kelly Says

Dactylology connects three seemingly unrelated fields—deaf sign language researchers, forensic scientists studying fingerprints, and anatomists—all using variations of the same Greek root word.

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