Palmistry
Reading character and fortune from the lines and shape of the hand.
Also: chiromancy, palm reading, chirology, Samudrika Shastra
Palmistry, also called chiromancy, interprets the hand's major lines, usually named heart, head and life, together with its mounts, fingers and shape. It is documented in India, where it belongs to the Samudrika Shastra, the study of bodily signs, and in China and Greece; Aristotle is credited, probably wrongly, with a treatise on it. In medieval Europe it was a learned art, though churchmen disapproved of it. A Victorian revival brought the Irish reader William Warner, known as Cheiro, to high society. Palm readers ask to see the dominant hand, and many make no claims about dates of death. Studies have found no reliable link between the lines and life events, and some countries have licensed or restricted paid readings.