Synonyms
Definitions
Hemisphere of the brain considered to play the leading role in hand preference and skill, and in mental processes such as language. The opposite hemisphere is sometimes described as nondominant or minor.
Mirror system: A network in the primate brain that responds to both the production and the perception of voluntary manual actions.
Introduction
Interest in the relation between language and handedness dates from the discovery by Paul Broca in the 19th century that the left hemisphere of the brain was primarily responsible for articulate speech (Broca 1861). Since most people were right-handed, implying left-hemispheric control, the left hemisphere was generally referred to as the dominant or major hemisphere, with the right hemisphere relegated to subordinate status as nondominant or minor. It was also assumed that dominance was reversed in left-handers, so that speech would be controlled by the right hemisphere. For a time...
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References
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Corballis, M. (2016). Language and Handedness. In: Weekes-Shackelford, V., Shackelford, T., Weekes-Shackelford, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_3340-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_3340-1
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