Visit our online shop for your left-handed productsWhat is the proportion of left-handers?
Answer: There has never been a wide scale survey of the number of lefthanders and as far as we are aware it has never been included in any national census or statistics data. The figure from a wide range of small samples done for various research purposes is generally quoted as around 10%. More recent research seems to indicate a rise to something like 13% but it is likely that this is just a result of the more general acceptance of lefthandedness and less people being made to change as children.
You can read Keith’s detailed article on the probability of having a left-handed child here
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I hate fountain pens so much I would like to put them all in a pit and burn them
My husband and I are both left handed. We have nine children, 4 of which are lefties. #5 was our first lefthanded child. Our last 3 kids are all lefthanded. What are the chances of have 3 lefties in a row? Just curious if you knew.
my brother and i are the only two children in the family ,
both of us are left handed.
both our parents are right handed.
are there any statistics on this
thanks
Huh! Same here, my brother and I are the only left-handers out of two right handed parents, and we were born in a row. We’re called -lovingly- the devil children. I read the chances of that happening are more frequent than if the parents are both left handed as well, however.
I work in law enforcement and instruct criminal intelligence analysis courses nationwide (US) I am often astounded by the number of my students who are left handed, it is not unusual for me to have percentages ranging from 30 to 50 percent of my students being left handed. I am wondering if there is any empirical evidence or research to support the assertion the lefties tend towards this type of vocation?
Tony
Me and my wife are both left-handed but we have had a left-handed son and a right-handed daughter!
Because of the way the percentages work, it is quite normal for left-handed parents to have a mix of left- and right-handed children. The chance of a left-handed child being born to two left-handed parents is about 20%, or 1 in 5, so the combined chance of having two left-handed children in a row is only about 4%, or 1 in 25.