What Are the Names of Each Finger?

Since most people know the colloquial names of the fingers, we’ll start there and then go into the anatomical and hand analysis names.

Thumb

The thumb is the short, stubby one that can rotate in all directions (opposable thumb). In contrast to the other fingers, the thumb only had two segments – a tip segment and a base segment. All of the other fingers also have a middle segment. The anatomical name for the thumb is the 1st finger. Hand analyists call it the thumb just like the rest of us.

Index Finger

The index finger, also known as the pointer finger, the forefinger and the trigger finger, is the one sticking up on those giant foam hands people buy at ball games. The index finger’s anatomical name is the 2nd finger, digitus secundus or digitus II. Its hand analysis name is the 1st finger or the Jupiter finger, so named for the king of the Greek gods because of the relationship between this finger and the character traits Jupiter represents: leadership, self-esteem, ambition and authority.

Middle Finger

The bird finger, the long finger, The Finger, digitus infamous, the tall man on the third row of the children’s rhyme, “Here’s the church, and here’s the steeple. Open the doors, and see all the people.” This is the finger we try not to showcase in solo performances (except in response to a particularly bad display of driving ability).

Its anatomical name is the 3rd finger, digitus tertius, digitus III or digitus medius (because it’s in the middle). Palm readers know it as the 2nd finger or the Saturn finger. It is named after the Greek god Saturn, god of justice and strength. This finger, according to hand analysts, tells of a person’s sense of responsibility, justice and the law.

Ring Finger

This is the finger where many ladies hope one day to have a shiny piece of rock and a wedding band. There are no other colloquial names for it, and that may be because many women won’t let men forget WHAT’S SUPPOSED TO GO THERE. This, however, is merely conjecture.

The ring finger has several anatomical names including the 4th finger, digitus quartus, digitus IV, digitus annularis and digitus medicinalis. Interestingly, the medical community and the hand analysis community agree on the latter (medicinalis). Hand analysts know this finger as the 3rd finger or the Apollo finger, and Apollo, among other things, was the Greek god of medicine and healing. He was also the god of truth, poetry and the arts, and hand analysts believe this finger to be associated with self-expression, creativity and interpersonal relationships.

Little Finger

Also known as the baby finger or pinky, the little finger is the smallest of all the fingers (and most aptly named).

Its anatomical name is the 5th finger, digitus quintus or digitus V, while hand analysts call it the 4th finger or the Mercury finger. Mercury, who is associated with the Greek god Hermes, was a messenger, and the little finger is said to be associated with communication.