One explanation, as stated in a Quora thread, is that men's shirt buttons are placed on the right to allow easier access to their weapons during duels, while women, who were primarily engaged in rearing children, had their buttons on the left.
According to a Quora thread, one explanation is that men's shirt buttons are placed on the right to quickly retrieve their weapons during duels, while women, who were primarily engaged in rearing children, had their buttons on the left.
“It was more convenient and quicker to use their left hand for unbuttoning,” read the thread.
In the past, men usually carried their swords on their right side, making it convenient for them to quickly open their shirts for dueling and self-protection.
Meanwhile, women's shirts were designed with the consideration of their primary role in caring for babies.
Women tend to hold their babies with their left arm to keep their dominant right hand free from other tasks. So, women's shirt buttons are on the left to allow easy access with the free hand, which made breastfeeding easier.
Another theory suggests that the distinction in button placement emerged during the era of emancipation when women started to wear trousers and other styles borrowed from men, instead of their restrictive corsets and girdles.
Button manufacturers may have decided to place buttons on the left side of women's clothing as a practical way to differentiate between men's and women's garments, as the cut in the fabric is also different.
The Atlantic presents an intriguing theory related to the French military and political leader Napoleon Bonaparte. It is said that Napoleon, annoyed by women imitating the way he posed with his hand between the buttons of his shirt, decided to take action.
To deter the teasing and mimicry, some believe that Napoleon might have ordered women's shirts to be buttoned on the opposite side of men's.
This change in button placement could have been a strategic move to put an end to the teasing and differentiate between men's and women's clothing.
The distinction in button placement between men's and women's clothing is rooted in tradition, as noted by Alex Fisher on Quora: "The buttons and fastenings were arranged to make it easier to close and fasten the garments, which required that men’s garments had the fastenings arrayed on the right, while a lady’s dresser required that they be on the opposite side."
Many people were surprised by the revelation and expressed their thoughts on social media.
One person commented: It is about breastfeeding -- you gotta have it easier to whip 'em out.
A second wrote: The buttons on women’s dress shirts are on the opposite side because once upon a time, a ladies’ maid was the one fastening them. Men, on the other hand, were considered capable of buttoning their own shirts.
Another said: I've always told my husband the way to remember this is the fact that men are always RIGHT only when women have LEFT the building!
