Originally published on May 3, 2010
Where did the common “military salute” get its start?
Please forward a RiddleDude email to friends and family in your address book. Suggest that they sign up for the daily email. Ask them to forward it to their friends. Paste us to your Facebook page!
You can best support our site—which is also YOUR site—by promoting it.
RiddleDude.com is a free site and will always be a free site. We do it for the love of riddles. Remember, your comments and submissions are always welcome.
RiddleDude
November 10th, 2012 | Category: 
Warning: Use of undefined constant bfa_comments - assumed 'bfa_comments' (this will throw an Error in a future version of PHP) in /home/customer/www/riddledude.com/public_html/wp-content/themes/atahualpa/comments.php on line 132
Hat off?
Nope, but nice try.
Isn’t it “ten hut” a shortened, shouted version of attention?
It’s possible, but not related to the riddle’s answer.
Attention?
Nope, keep trying.
Was it from the medieval times, when knights would raise their visors (with their right hands) when seeing an approaching knight? I think it was if they were meeting a comrade, or to tell friend from foe…
You are absolutely correct, Nanao Ise.
According to modern military manuals, the modern western salute originated in the Middle Ages when knights who greeted each other raised their visors to show their faces, using a motion that resulted in what looks like a modern salute. Their helmets were equipped with protruding pins on the visors to allow the visors to be lifted using the saluting motion.
Some historians believe it began in late Roman times when assassinations were common. A citizen who wanted to see a public official had to approach with his right hand raised to show that he did not hold a weapon.
Nanao Ise, you are today’s winner.