Tag Archives: Gesture

Defense Partners

Defense Partner Handshake

Title: Defense Partners

General Information about Item:

  • Customary Lore, Gestures
  • Language: English
  • Country of Origin: Canada
  • Informant: Hailey Noronha
  • Date Collected: 2-22-18

Informant Data:

  • Hailey Noronha was born in a town right outside Toronto, Ontario in November,1996. She is a senior at Dartmouth College on the Women’s Varsity Ice Hockey Team. Hailey was the captain on the team this past year and is a sociology major at Dartmouth. She started playing hockey when she was about three years old because of her older brother and dad who played.

Contextual Data: 

  • Cultural Context: When explaining this folklore, Hailey was smiling the whole time and appreciated the bond it created with a girl on the team two years younger than her. They originally started doing this about the first or second game of Hailey’s junior year and Bailee’s freshmen year.
  • Social ContextAfter on-ice warm-ups before the game, the team comes back into the locker room. During this time coach gives a pre-game speech and then leaves. At this time, the team stands up and a lot of people have pre-game rituals and handshakes with other girls on the team. Hailey and Bailee, a sophomore defenseman on the team, perform their handshake at this time. 

Item:

  • Bailee Brekke, a current sophomore on the team, and Hailey perform a handshake before going on the ice for the start of the game. Once coach leaves the locker room, Hailey and Bailee find each other and do a high five, then low five, and finally grab hands and bring them to the sky. They then back down low and are ready for the game. 

Transcript:

  • “I can’t stop smiling thinking about our handshake–It puts me in the right mindset before the start of the game!”

Collector’s Name: Sarah Tabeek

Tags/Keywords:

  • Customary Lore
  • Gesture
  • Defense Partner Handshake

Lap Counter Gestures: College

  1. Title: Gestures using the Lap Counter, College Swimming
  2. Informant: AnnClaire MacArt, 20, Female.  AnnClaire (AC) was born and raised in Northern California.  She currently lives in Hanover, New Hampshire and is a sophomore at Dartmouth College.  AC is a member of the Dartmouth College Varsity Swimming and Diving Team.  She has swum competitively for over 10 years, including at the age group (club), high school, and now collegiate level.
  3. Customary: Gesture.  Material: Lap Counter.
  4. Language: English
  5. Country of Origin: United States
  6. Social / Cultural Context: Gestures are done with a lap counter by one swimmer while they are “counting” for another swimmer at a competition in order to communicate with the swimmer in the water.
  7. Small Excerpt from Interview with AnnClaire (0:20-0:30 specifically for this gesture)

  8. Transcript “The shaking, you have the slow shaking, you have the hold shaking, and the ‘let’s go!!’ shaking”
  9. Informant’s comments: The slow shaking of the lap counter indicates to slightly start picking up your pace.  It usually is performed at the beginning of the race.  When the lap counter is held steady, it means to stay at the pace that you’re currently going.  The fast shaking is usually used for the last part of the race, especially the last lap.
  10. Collector’s comments: AC is a distance swimmer and therefore has experience with the different gestures for a lap counter.
  11. Tags/Keywords: Gesture

“Steady Pace” Gesture

  1. Title: Gesture Indicating to Maintain Pace.
  2. Informant: AnnClaire MacArt, 20, Female.AnnClaire (AC) was born and raised in Northern California.  She currently lives in Hanover, New Hampshire and is a sophomore at Dartmouth College.  AC is a member of the Dartmouth College Varsity Swimming and Diving Team.  She has swum competitively for over 10 years, including at the age group (club), high school, and now collegiate level.
  3. Customary: Gesture
  4. Language: English
  5. Country of Origin: United States
  6. Social / Cultural Context: Gesture is used by a coach in a competition setting to indicate to a swimmer to hold a steady pace.
  7. Small Excerpt from Interview with AC where she talks about gestures. (0:13-0:21 for this specific one)

  8. Transcript: “Coaches will either do the “OK” or the hold, to hold a pace”
  9. Informant’s comments:  AC commented that gestures are a big part of swimming, especially meets.
  10. Collector’s comments: In the interview, AC acted out the gestures.  Even though she only did it with one hand, she explained these gestures would typically be done with two arms.
  11. Tags/Keywords: Gesture