Index finger

The index finger or forefinger is the second digit of a human hand, located between the thumb and the middle finger. It is usually the most dexterous finger of a hand and is usually used to point to things (a direction, an object etc.), thus it is also called the pointer finger. It is also called the second finger, index, digitus secundus, or digitus II in anatomy.

Gestures

As mentioned above, the forefinger can be used for pointing. However, this gesture is considered rude in some countries (Brunei, for instance), and other gestures are used instead.

A lone index finger often is used to represent the number 1, or when held up, it can be an admonitory gesture.

During the Bosnian war, Serbo-Bosnian troops raised three fingers in a sign of victory, Bosnian Croats raised two fingers and Muslims raised one (after the strict monotheism of Islam).

Unicode

There are six index finger symbols in Unicode.

• Black left pointing index: U+261A ☚
• Black right pointing index: U+261B ☛
• White left pointing index: U+261C ☜
• White up pointing index: U+261D ☝
• White right pointing index: U+261E ☞
• White down pointing index: U+261F ☟