The History & Meanings Of African American's Dap Handshakes (with YouTube videos)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This is Part IV of a four part pancocojams series on American hand gestures. Part IV of this series focuses on dap (handshakes).

Each of the posts in this series focus on hand gestures that were either created by African Americans or have been most closely associated with African Americans.

For Part I of this series (Five On The Black Hand Side handshakes), click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2012/05/five-on-black-hand-side-handshake.html.

For Part II of this series (High Fives),
click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2012/05/high-five-handshake-videos.html

For Part III of this series (Fist Bump/"Pound") click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2012/05/fist-bump-pound-handshakes.html.

The content of this post is presented for historical, folkloric, entertainment, and aesthetic purposes.

The copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those quoted in this post, and to all those who are featured in these videos. Thanks also to the publishers of these videos on YouTube.
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Most of this pancocojams post was originally published in May 2012. http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2012/05/giving-daps-intricate-handshakes.html.

The 2012 post has a section that isn't included in this post.

Some of the videos in this 2020 post are different than the videos in the 2012 post.

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PANCOCOJAMS EDITOR'S NOTE
Daps are usually done only by men to other men.

Here's how some African American women often greet each other and how we often greet African American men:
Depending on who they are and where they are (for instance, whether or not they are in a predominately Black setting or a predominately White setting) some African American women greet other African American women and African American men by briefly and lightly hugging each other. This form of hugging is usually to the side and not belly to belly.

Sometimes African American women will pat each other or Black men on the back while hugging and sometimes we will give air kisses (pretend to give a kiss on each cheek of the person being hugged).

"The hug" with or without patting on the back and/or air kisses is the expected form of greeting that most Black women do and expect to receive at Black functions such as an African dance program and a Kwanzaa gathering.

I've also given "the hug" to some non-Black women-and less often, some non-Black men- depending on our setting and how familiar and comfortable with African American culture I believe they are.

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2020/02/information-about-videos-of-african.html for the pancocojams post entitled "Information About & Videos Of African American Women Giving Hugs When Greeting People Or Saying Goodbye"

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PART IV
GENERAL OVERVIEW OF DAP HANDSHAKES
From http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-dap-greeting.htm
"A dap greeting is a series of arranged gestures exchanged between two individuals. Although a dap greeting can be exchanged upon meeting someone, it can also be used to indicate agreement, celebration or fellowship at any time. A dap greeting can include slapping hands, bumping fists in any direction, snapping, wiggling fingers and other forms of contact, and it can last anywhere from a few seconds to more than a minute. Dap greetings originated in the black community and have since spread to other racial groups, with many subcultures and groups of friends developing their own very specific dap greetings...

Origins

This type of greeting typically is non-verbal, and it is exchanged as a gesture of affection and solidarity. Dap greetings are believed to have originated in Africa, where people from different tribes might exchange such greetings upon meeting each other to indicate peaceful and friendly intentions. Blacks who emigrated to other parts of the world — including those forcefully transported as slaves — developed their own dap greetings...

Meaning of "Dap"
Some people believe that “dap” is an acronym for “dignity and pride,” reflecting the adoption of the dap greeting by the black power movement. Others suggest that “dignity and pride” is merely what is sometimes called a "backronym" — an acronym thought up after a word already existed. "Dap" also might be a shortening of another word or an onomatopoeia — a word that imitates the noise produced by this type of greeting; some dap greetings create a sound much like “dap,” which is produced by pulling the slightly cupped hands of the participants against each other."
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From http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Shake-That--The-Right-Way/3669693
Shake That! The Right Way By: liss
"[In] Benin [West Africa], young men snap fingers while shaking hands. In Botswana [South Africa], people touch hands with a slight grazing of the palms and fingers. In Singapore [Asia], after you handshake its customary to place the other persons hand over your heart. Among Scandinavian [Europe] teens, exchanging spit by means of a handshake seals a deal...

Jamaicans complain that Americans are distant and Americans complain that Germans are cold and unfriendly. Sure, when you first meet them, Jamaicans dont shake hands with you. But once you get acquainted, they expect a casual lock and fly or a one harmed hug or a shug or a bro grab or a hetero-hug or whatever its known as in your country" ...
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From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dap_greeting:
"Though it can refer to many kinds of greetings involving hand contact, dap is best known as a complicated routine of shakes, slaps, snaps, and other contact that must be known completely by both parties involved. Dap greeting sometimes include a pound hug."

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DAPS: EXCERPT FROM THE AFRICAN AMERICAN EXPERIENCE IN VIETNAM: BROTHERS IN ARMS
*ADDED SECTION [February 25, 2018] : The African American Experience in Vietnam: Brothers in Arms
By James E. Westheider
https://books.google.com/books?id=VHEL34ALzO4C&pg=PA76&lpg=PA76&dq=fist+pounding+heart+handshake&source=bl&ots=McVvUG2DxW&sig=AnQNKfKkpEk2V9WQZ0wUecSa-VA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwin19vV7MHZAhXIUt8KHdCYB9w4ChDoAQgvMAE#v=onepage&q=fist%20pounding%20heart%20handshake&f=false
page 76
..."African Americans who remained in the armed services often reacted to racism by seeking comfort and safety in racial solidarity and by establishing their own sub-culture within the military. They called each other “brother”, “soul brother”, or “bloods”, and they were proud of being black. Two popular methods of greeting fellow black soldiers and demonstrating racial solidarity were the black power salute, a clenched fist in the air, and the “dab”, which developed in Vietnam, probably among inmates of the notorious Long Binh stockade. Dap is a corruption of the word “dep” Vietnamese slang for something beautiful. The dap, also known as “checking in”, was an intricate ritualized handshake, involving numerous gestures and movements. There was no standard dap, but there were many common gestures. There were countless variations of dap, and some of the more common greetings could go on for five or more minutes. Each move had a specific meaning: Pounding on the heart with a clenched fist, for example, symbolized brotherly love and solidarity; clenching fingers together and then touching the backside of the hand meant “My brother, I’m with you”. Most of the gestures signified solidarity, respect, and pride, but a few had darker meanings. A slicing movement across the throat symbolized cutting the throats of white MPs, never a favorite group among black recruits."...

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SHOWCASE VIDEOS
Video #1: Handshake Tutorial



Michael W Gaskins, July 24, 2009

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Video #2: lebrons Pre-game handshakes



Uploaded by nlnodoubt on Dec 20, 2009

lebron james secret handshakes with his Cleveland cavaliers teammates, He is truly an incredible talent.
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Actually, I don't think these handshakes are secret. "Personalized" is probably a better word to describe them, as Lebron appears to have a different dap handshake for each person.

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Video #3: Monta Ellis' Amazing Handshake



Uploaded by SciFientology on Jan 14, 2010
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WARNING! A number of viewers of this video connected the handshake shown in this video with the Gangster Disciple Nation (GDN or GD).

Certain handshakes are associated with specific gangs. Those handshakes absolutely should NOT be done by people who aren’t members of those gangs.

[This prohibition against non-members doing this handshake doesn't apply to the high five that followed it.]
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In this clip, Monta Ellis said "I told ya I'd warm that thang up." (referring to the basketball shots that he made.]

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Video #4: Ebony & Ivory Handshake - The Bert Show



Uploaded by q100atlanta on Jun 19, 2011

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Video #5: Everybody Hates Chris and Albert Hand Shake



Sly Cooper, Aug 3, 2012

from season Season 3 Episode 9 of Everbody Hates Chris
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From
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Everybody_Hates_Chris
"This television show is inspired by the teenage experiences of comedian Chris Rock (who is also the narrator). The show is set from 1982 to 1987; however, Rock himself was a teenager during years 1978-1983."

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Video #6: Fresh Prince - Will Jazz Handshake Compilation



Jibb's Compilations, Published on May 7, 2014

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Video #6: Wake Forest's Cortez Lewis Has A Handshake With Every Teammate



ACC Digital Network, Aug 17, 2015

Wake Forest redshirt freshman receiver Cortez Lewis has a different choreographed handshake for nearly everyone that he comes across. It has been written that he has more than 50 handshakes with members of the Demon Deacon football program. Watch as Lewis shows off his collection everywhere he goes from the football field, to the cafeteria and even the coaches' offices in this ACC Must See Moment.

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Video #7: Dignity and Pride Communicated by a Handshake



Great Big Story, Feb 5, 2018

The dap is more than just a handshake, it’s a symbol of solidarity, one with a long and proud history behind it. The origins of this greeting trace back to young Black American soldiers stationed abroad during the Vietnam War. With racism prevalent in the military and a new Black consciousness emerging during the civil rights movement, the young soldiers developed a physical language as a gesture of unity. Thus was born the dap, an acronym for “Dignity and Pride.” Photographer LaMont Hamilton has been studying the historical impact of the dap in his series “Five on the Black Hand Side,” telling the story of how the handshake came to hold such a profound place in Black culture.

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