In 1968 The New York Times described it as a “double-fingered version of Churchill’s victory sign”

Today it’s a hand gesture as recognizable as a thumbs up or the middle finger. Leonard Nimoy invented the Vulcan salute as an exercise in character development. He told The Times that he decided the Vulcans were a hand-oriented people, and he felt it necessary to give them their own greeting similar to the handshake or the wave.

If you watched Star Trek as a kid (or maybe even last week) you no doubt tried pull off the Vulcan salute as effortlessly as Spock — and you either succeeded or had to “cheat” by manually arranging your fingers using your other hand. Many actors in the original TV show had the same problem. It wasn’t uncommon for them to get their fingers in position prior to filming a “salute” take. In fact in Star Trek: First Contact, the difficulty of the salute was joked about when James Cromwell, upon meeting a Vulcan for the first time, resignedly outstretches his arm for a handshake, having pre-emptively given up on the salute.

Mr Spock
by bariscantay

Live Long and Prosper
by Cattensu

Nimoy’s inspiration for the salute was a “secret” he spied as a child

Live Long and Prosper
by Lord-Of-The-Guns

When Young Leonard was attending a service in an Orthodox Synagogue, he became curious as to what the Rabbi was doing when everybody’s eyes were closed and their heads were bowed in prayer.

The boy peeked and witnessed “the priestly blessing” — essentially the Vulcan salute made with both hands, joined together at the thumbs. The symbol is supposed to represent a Hebrew letter associated with the idea of “almighty God” (that’s the short version, anyway).

Given the popularity of Star Trek, including its latest resurgence over the last few years, the Vulcan salute has eclipsed the original religious symbolic meaning it is derived from. The now iconic Vulcan greeting of “live long and prosper” met with the reply “peace and long life,” can also trace its intergalactic origins to other similarly-structured religious greetings.

In fondest memory of the all-too-mortal Leonard Nimoy and the immortal Mr. Spock, I most sincerely say unto you, may you live long and prosper — whether you were born with a contortionist’s fingers or not.