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（英会話リスニングスクリプト）
In western countries, shaking another person's
hand has a long history.
A common belief is that it originated as
a way to see if the other person was carrying a weapon or
not.
One theory is that because, in England as
in Japan, people drive on the left, and that two horsemen
riding towards each other used to shake hands to show that
they weren't carrying swords in their right hands.
Anyway, it eventually became a way to greet
people when meeting or departing.
In Western Europe, America and Canada, many
people shake hands when they meet a new person, see an acquaintance
or old friend, or when saying goodbye.
Almost always men and women shake hands
in business situations.
Traditionally, men have to stand to shake
hands but women don't have to get up from their seats.
However, as there are more and more women
in the world of business, it is getting increasingly common
for them to stand up as well.
Kissing a woman's hand is considered to
be very old-fashioned these days.
The proper way to shake someone's hand is
to take the person's right hand into your hand and shake
it firmly once or twice.
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