00:00For something so tiny, buttons have caused an awful lot of confusion.
00:04Have you always wondered, why are men's shirt buttons on the right, while women's buttons are on the left?
00:09For thousands of years, people tied clothes with strings, pinned them together, wrapped themselves in cloth.
00:15Buttons did exist, but they were for decorative purposes.
00:19But, around 1200 AD, the buttonhole was created.
00:22So, why the different sides?
00:24Well, men would generally dress themselves.
00:26And since most people are right-handed, it made sense to put the buttons on the wearer's right side.
00:31But wealthy women get servants to it.
00:33Women's fashions were made with buttons on the left to make it more convenient for the servants.
00:38But once the maids disappeared,
00:40Apparently the buttons never got the memo.
00:42And the tradition stuck.
00:43So, the next time you find yourself buttoning your shirt, know this.
00:47You are participating in the world's longest-running case of...
00:50We've always done it this way.
00:52Always wondered.
00:54Stream it now, wherever you get your podcasts.
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