Who invented the High-Five? The Controversial Origins of Symbolic Gesture
You've done it thousands of times. After the game-winning shot, a solid joke, the same parking job well done. You probably never think twice about who did it first. The high-five is so woven into sports and everyday life that it feels like it's been around forever — like a handshake or a wave.
It didn't happen. The high-five is a surprisingly modern act, and its exact origins are one of the most interestingly unresolved debates in sports. While many borrow the famous 1977 season between Los Angeles Dodger teammates Dusty Baker again Glenn Burkemany competing stories and cultural references have emerged over time – some well-documented, others later refuted or fabricated. No one has answered the question for sure.
1977 High-Five Moment Most People Know
According to Britannica, the most widely accepted origin story traces the high-five to October 2, 1977. That's the day Dodgers left pitcher Dusty Baker hit his 30th home run of the season. When Baker crossed home plate, teammate Glenn Burke greeted him with a raised hand. Baker slapped it happily.
The season is often referred to as the first recorded high-profile game, and Burke is known for helping introduce touchdowns to professional sports. But there is a catch: the connection was not televised. The most famous story of the origin of one of the most recognized gestures in the world exists only in the memories of the people who were there.
“His hand was up in the air, and he was going backwards,” Baker told ESPN in 2020. “So I reached up and hit his hand. It seemed like the right thing to do.”
Even by Baker's telling, it was spontaneous – a reaction, not a repeated gesture.
Previous Claims and Some of the Top Five
Despite the popularity of the MLB origin story, historians and cultural references suggest that touchdowns may be much older.
Some accounts suggest that the five may have been among the US troops stationed in Japan after World War II. Others noted visual similarities to previous media, including the scene Jean-Luc Godard1960 movie Out of breath where the characters seem to be making the same gesture – nearly two decades before Baker and Burke's moment.
Another theory links the high-five to African American Vernacular English, specifically the phrase “gimme five.” This line of thinking suggests that the physical movement arose from existing cultural expressions – that the upward palm slap was not invented all at once but gradually grew out of a greeting with deeper roots than any sporting celebration.
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Louisville Basketball Stars Have Made Their Own Claims About The Top Five
In the context of basketball, one story features the University of Louisville players Wiley Brown again Derek Smith by creating a touch. At the University of Louisville's basketball practice facility during the 1978-79 season, forward Brown went to Smith five times. Unexpectedly, Smith looked Brown in the eye and said, “No. Up high.”
The Cardinals were known as the Dunk Doctors. They played above the rim. So when Smith raised his hand, it clicked for Brown: He understood how the underlings were at odds with the essential, vertical character of their group.
“I thought, yeah, why are we sitting so low? We're jumping so much,” Brown told ESPN. Brown insists that it was Smith who invented the high-five and Smith spread it across the country.
Today, although the true origins are still debated, the high-five remains a universal symbol of celebration, widely used in sports, pop culture and everyday life. Whether it was born in a Los Angeles dugout, a Louisville basketball gym or a military base overseas, the act now belongs to everyone who has ever raised a hand and found another waiting.
Where did it really start? No one would agree – and yet, that may be part of what makes the story worth telling.
