I remember reading or hearing some of Desmond Morris's theories about this. He reckoned that there were some aspects of body language that were quite universal. One was showing an open hand to some one you meet, as a wave, a handshake, etc. It's the opposite of a fist; it indicates that you have no weapon and mean no harm.

Another one is bowing the head, or even lowering the body by bending the knee, in humility, or to show respect or subservience. The opposite of this is doing all you can to gain height - standing on a platform, raising your head high, wearing a tall hat or headgear, using high hand gestures - which are ways of asserting superiority or dominance.

Putting your hand near your mouth or your nose as you speak can often indicate that you are not being honest - you are subconsciously using your hand to interrupt the untruth.

These might all sound a bit obvious, but you can see little echoes of them in casual, everday conversations all the time.

Fascinating stuff.

Marje