![Standard household scissors](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/Standard_household_scissors.jpg)
Scissors are hand-operated shearing tools. A pair of scissors consists of a pair of
metal
A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. Metals are typicall ...
blade
A blade is the portion of a tool, weapon, or machine with an edge that is designed to puncture, chop, slice or scrape surfaces or materials. Blades are typically made from materials that are harder than those they are to be used on. Historic ...
s pivoted so that the sharpened edges slide against each other when the handles (bows) opposite to the pivot are closed. Scissors are used for cutting various thin materials, such as
paper
Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, rags, grasses or other vegetable sources in water, draining the water through fine mesh leaving the fibre evenly distributed ...
,
cardboard
Cardboard is a generic term for heavy paper-based products. The construction can range from a thick paper known as paperboard to corrugated fiberboard which is made of multiple plies of material. Natural cardboards can range from grey to light b ...
,
metal foil
A foil is a very thin sheet of metal, typically made by hammering or rolling.Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "foil". Encyclopedia Britannica, 6 Nov. 2008https://www.britannica.com/technology/foil-metallurgy.Accessed 11 September 2022. Fo ...
,
cloth
Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...
,
rope
A rope is a group of yarns, plies, fibres, or strands that are twisted or braided together into a larger and stronger form. Ropes have tensile strength and so can be used for dragging and lifting. Rope is thicker and stronger than similarly ...
, and
wire
Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample diameter 40 mm
A wire is a flexible strand of metal.
Wire is c ...
. A large variety of scissors and shears all exist for specialized purposes.
Hair-cutting shears
Hair-cutting shears are scissors that are specifically designed for cutting hair. They are also known as barber shears, hairdressing shears, or hair shears. They range in size from about 5 to 7 inches (13 to 18 cm) long and commonly have an appen ...
and
kitchen shears
Scissors are hand-operated shearing tools. A pair of scissors consists of a pair of metal blades pivoted so that the sharpened edges slide against each other when the handles (bows) opposite to the pivot are closed. Scissors are used for cutti ...
are functionally equivalent to scissors, but the larger implements tend to be called
shears
Shears may refer to:
Cutting devices
* Scissors, also called shears
* Hair-cutting shears
* Blade shears, typically used for shearing animals
* Grass shears, for lawn trimming
* Kitchen shears, scissors used in the kitchen for food preparation
* ...
. Hair-cutting shears have specific blade angles ideal for cutting
hair
Hair is a protein filament that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals.
The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick terminal and f ...
. Using the incorrect type of scissors to cut hair will result in increased damage or split ends, or both, by breaking the hair. Kitchen shears, also known as kitchen scissors, are intended for cutting and trimming foods such as meats.
Inexpensive, mass-produced modern scissors are often designed
ergonomically with composite
thermoplastic
A thermoplastic, or thermosoft plastic, is any plastic polymer material that becomes pliable or moldable at a certain elevated temperature and solidifies upon cooling.
Most thermoplastics have a high molecular weight. The polymer chains associate ...
and
rubber
Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, and ...
handle
A handle is a part of, or attachment to, an object that allows it to be grasped and manipulated by hand. The design of each type of handle involves substantial ergonomic issues, even where these are dealt with intuitively or by following tra ...
s.
Terminology
The noun ''scissors'' is treated as a
plural noun, and therefore takes a plural verb (e.g., ''these scissors are''). Alternatively, the tool is referred to by the singular phrase ''a pair of scissors''. The word ''shears'' is used to describe similar instruments that are larger in size and for heavier cutting.
History
![Shears MET 29I E08R4](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3d/Shears_MET_29I_E08R4.jpg)
The earliest known scissors appeared in
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the F ...
3,000 to 4,000 years ago. These were of the 'spring scissor' type comprising two
bronze
Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids such ...
blades connected at the handles by a thin, flexible strip of curved bronze which served to hold the blades in alignment, to allow them to be squeezed together, and to pull them apart when released.
Spring scissors continued to be used in Europe until the 16th century. However, pivoted scissors of bronze or
iron
Iron () is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from la, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, right in f ...
, in which the blades were pivoted at a point between the tips and the handles, the direct ancestor of modern scissors, were invented by the
Romans
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
around 100 AD. They entered common use in not only ancient Rome, but also
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...
,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
, and
Korea
Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...
, and the idea is still used in almost all modern scissors.
Early manufacture
During the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
and
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...
, spring scissors were made by heating a bar of iron or steel, then flattening and shaping its ends into blades on an anvil. The center of the bar was heated, bent to form the spring, then cooled and reheated to make it flexible.
The Hangzhou Zhang Xiaoquan Company in Hangzhou, China, has been manufacturing scissors since 1663.
William Whiteley & Sons (Sheffield) Ltd. was producing scissors by 1760, although it is believed the business began trading even earlier. The first trade-mark, 332, was granted in 1791. The company is still manufacturing scissors today, and is the oldest company in the West to do so.
Pivoted scissors were not manufactured in large numbers until 1761, when
Robert Hinchliffe
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...
of
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...
produced the first pair of modern-day scissors made of hardened and polished
cast steel
Steel casting is a specialized form of casting involving various types of steel cast to either final/net or near-net shape. Steel castings are used when iron castings cannot deliver enough strength or shock resistance.Oberg, p. 1332
Examples ...
. His major challenge was to form the bows; first, he made them solid, then drilled a hole, and then filed away metal to make this large enough to admit the user's fingers. This process was laborious, and apparently Hinchliffe improved upon it in order to increase production. Hinchliffe lived in Cheney Square (now the site of
Sheffield Town Hall
Sheffield Town Hall is a municipal building on Pinstone Street in the City of Sheffield, England. The building is used by Sheffield City Council, and also contains a publicly displayed collection of silverware. It is a Grade I listed building. ...
), and set up a sign identifying himself as a "fine scissor manufacturer". He achieved strong sales in London and elsewhere.
During the 19th century, scissors were hand-forged with elaborately decorated handles. They were made by hammering steel on indented surfaces known as 'bosses' to form the blades. The rings in the handles, known as bows, were made by punching a hole in the steel and enlarging it with the pointed end of an anvil.
In 1649, in
Swedish
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
-ruled
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
, an ironworks was founded in the village of
Fiskars
Fiskars Group (also known as Fiskars Oyj Abp or Fiskars Corporation, and until 1998 as Fiskars Oy Ab) is a Finnish group company. The company has its roots in the village of Fiskars (in the town of Raseborg, about west of Helsinki), where it was ...
between
Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
and
Turku
Turku ( ; ; sv, Åbo, ) is a city and former capital on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River, in the region of Finland Proper (''Varsinais-Suomi'') and the former Turku and Pori Province (''Turun ja Porin lääni''; ...
. In 1830, a new owner started the first cutlery works in Finland, making, among other items, scissors with the
Fiskars
Fiskars Group (also known as Fiskars Oyj Abp or Fiskars Corporation, and until 1998 as Fiskars Oy Ab) is a Finnish group company. The company has its roots in the village of Fiskars (in the town of Raseborg, about west of Helsinki), where it was ...
trademark.
Modern manufacturing regions
China
The vast majority of global scissor manufacturing takes place in China. As of 2019, China was responsible for 64.3% of worldwide scissors exports. When combined with Chinese Taipei exports, this rises to 68.3%. The primary scissors producing region in China is in Guandong Province.
The Hangzhou Zhang Xiaoquan Company, founded in 1663, is one of the oldest continuously operating scissor manufacturers in the world. The company was nationalized in 1958 and now employs 1500 people who annually mass-produce an estimated 7-million pairs of inexpensive scissors that retail for an average of US$4 each.
France
In the late 14th century the English word “scissors” came into usage. It was derived from the Old French word, “cisoires” which referred to shears.
There are several historically important scissor-producing regions in France: Haute-Marne in Nogent-en Bassigny, Châtellereault, Thiers and Rouen. These towns, like many other scissor-producing communities, began with sabre, sword and bayonet production, which transitioned to scissors and other blades in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
Thiers, in the Puy-de-Dôme department of Auvergne, remains an important centre of scissor and cutlery production. It is home to both the Musée de la Coutellerie, which showcases the town’s 800 year history of blade-making, as well as
Coutellia, an industry tradeshow that advertises itself as one of the largest annual gatherings of artisanal blade-makers in the world.
Germany
Germany was responsible for manufacturing just under 7% of global scissors exports in 2019. Often called “The City of Blades”,
Solingen
Solingen (; li, Solich) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located some 25 km east of Düsseldorf along the northern edge of the region called Bergisches Land, south of the Ruhr area, and, with a 2009 population of 161,366, ...
, in North Rhine-Westphalia, has been a center for the manufacturing of scissors since medieval times. At the end of the 18th century it’s estimated that there were over 300 scissorsmiths in Solingen.
In 1995 the City of Solingen passed The Solingen Ordinance, an update to a 1930s law that decreed “Made in Solingen” stamps could only be applied to products almost entirely manufactured in the old industrial area of Solingen. In 2019 this applied to approximately 150 companies making high-quality blades of all kinds, including scissors.
Freidrich Herder, founded in Solingen in 1727, is one of the oldest scissors manufacturers still operating in Germany.
Italy
![Detatchable kitchen](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2b/Detatchable_kitchen.jpg)
Premana, in Lecco Province, has its origins in ironworks and knife manufacturing beginning in the 16th century. In 1900 there were ten scissor manufacturing workshops, 20 in 1952 and 48 by 1960. Today, Consorzio Premax, an industrial partnership, organizes over 60 local companies involved in the manufacture of scissors for global markets. In 2019 Italy exported 3.5% of scissors manufactured globally.
One of the oldest Premanese scissor manufacturing firms still in operation is Sanelli Ambrogio, which was founded in 1869.
Japan
Scissormaking in Japan evolved from sword making in the 14th century. Seki, in Gifu Prefecture, was a renowned center of swordmaking beginning in the 1200s. After citizens were no longer permitted to carry swords, the city’s blacksmiths turned to making scissors and knives. There are many specialized types of Japanese scissors, but sewing scissors were introduced by American Commodore Matthew Perry from the United States in 1854.
The Sasuke workshop in Sakai City south of Osaka is run by Yasuhiro Hirakawa, a 5th generation scissorsmith. The company has been in operation since 1867. Yasuhiro Hirakawa is the last traditional scissormaker in Japan, making scissors in the traditional style where the blades are believed to be thinner, lighter and sharper than European scissors. In 2018 he was profiled in a documentary that featured a pair of his bonsai snips which retailed for $35,000 USD.
Spain
In Solsona, Spain, scissor manufacturing began in the 16th century. At the industry’s peak in the 18th century there were 24 workshops, organized as the Guild of Saint Eligius, the patron saint of knife makers. By the mid-1980s there were only two, and by 2021, Pallarès Solsona, founded in 1917 by Lluìs and Carles Pallarès Canal, and still family-operated, was the town’s sole remaining artisanal scissor manufacturer.
United Kingdom
Sheffield, York, was home to the first mass production of scissors beginning in 1761. By the 19th century there were an estimated 60 steel scissor companies in Sheffield. However, since the 1980s, industry globalization and a shift towards cheaper, mass-produced scissors created price deflation that many artisanal manufacturers could not compete with. The Sheffield scissor industry consisted of just two local companies in 2021.
The two remaining Sheffield scissor manufacturers are William Whiteley, founded in 1760, and
Ernest Wright, which was established in 1902. Both now focus on high-end/niche crafting of “products for life” rather than mass production. Between these two firms it is estimated that there are no more than ten “Putter-Togetherers” or “Putters” who are the master-trained craftspeople responsible for high quality Sheffield scissor assembly. In 2020, Ernest Wright was recognized with the Award for Endangered Crafts by the British Heritage Crafts Association.
Description and operation
A pair of scissors consists of two pivoted blades. In lower-quality scissors, the cutting edges are not particularly sharp; it is primarily the
shearing
Sheep shearing is the process by which the woollen fleece of a sheep is cut off. The person who removes the sheep's wool is called a '' shearer''. Typically each adult sheep is shorn once each year (a sheep may be said to have been "shorn" or ...
action between the two blades that cuts the material. In high-quality scissors, the blades can be both extremely sharp, and tension sprung – to increase the cutting and shearing tension only at the exact point where the blades meet. The hand movement (pushing with the thumb, pulling with the fingers) can add to this tension. An ideal example is in high-quality tailor's scissors or shears, which need to be able to perfectly cut (and not simply tear apart) delicate cloths such as chiffon and silk.
Child
A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person younger ...
ren's scissors are usually not particularly sharp, and the tips of the blades are often blunted or 'rounded' for safety.
Mechanically, scissors are a first-class double-
lever
A lever is a simple machine consisting of a beam or rigid rod pivoted at a fixed hinge, or ''fulcrum''. A lever is a rigid body capable of rotating on a point on itself. On the basis of the locations of fulcrum, load and effort, the lever is div ...
with the pivot acting as the
fulcrum
A fulcrum is the support about which a lever pivots.
Fulcrum may also refer to:
Companies and organizations
* Fulcrum (Anglican think tank), a Church of England think tank
* Fulcrum Press, a British publisher of poetry
* Fulcrum Wheels, a bicy ...
. For cutting thick or heavy material, the
mechanical advantage
Mechanical advantage is a measure of the force amplification achieved by using a tool, mechanical device or machine system. The device trades off input forces against movement to obtain a desired amplification in the output force. The model for t ...
of a lever can be exploited by placing the material to be cut as close to the fulcrum as possible. For example, if the applied force (at the handles) is twice as far away from the fulcrum as the cutting location (i.e., the point of contact between the blades), the force at the cutting location is twice that of the applied force at the handles. Scissors cut material by applying at the cutting location a local
shear stress
Shear stress, often denoted by (Greek: tau), is the component of stress coplanar with a material cross section. It arises from the shear force, the component of force vector parallel to the material cross section. ''Normal stress'', on the ot ...
which exceeds the material's
shear strength
In engineering, shear strength is the strength of a material or component against the type of yield or structural failure when the material or component fails in shear. A shear load is a force that tends to produce a sliding failure on a materia ...
.
Some scissors have an appendage, called a finger brace or finger tang, below the index finger hole for the middle finger to rest on to provide for better control and more power in precision cutting. A finger tang can be found on many quality scissors (including inexpensive ones) and especially on scissors for cutting hair (see hair scissors pictured below). In hair cutting, some claim the ring finger is inserted where some place their index finger, and the little finger rests on the finger tang.
For people who do not have the use of their hands, there are specially designed foot-operated scissors. Some quadriplegics can use a motorized mouth-operated style of scissor.
Right-handed and left-handed scissors
![RH-LH sidebents](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7c/RH-LH_sidebents.jpg)
Most scissors are best suited for use with the right hand, but ''left-handed'' scissors are designed for use with the left hand. Because scissors have overlapping blades, they are not symmetric. This asymmetry is true regardless of the orientation and shape of the handles: the blade that is on top always forms the same diagonal regardless of orientation. Human hands are also asymmetric, and when closing, the thumb and fingers do not close vertically, but have a lateral component to the motion. Specifically, the thumb pushes out from the palm and the fingers pull inwards. For right-handed scissors held in the right hand, the thumb blade is closer to the user's body, so that the natural tendency of the right hand is to force the cutting blades together. Conversely, if right-handed scissors are held in the left hand, the natural tendency of the left hand would be to force the cutting blades laterally apart. Furthermore, with right-handed scissors held by the right hand, the shearing edge is visible, but when they are used with the left hand, the cutting edge of the scissors is behind the top blade, and one cannot see what is being cut.
There are two varieties of left-handed scissors. Many common left-handed scissors (often called “semi” left-handed scissors) simply have reversed finger grips. The blades open and close as with right-handed scissors, which forces users to pull the blades apart as they are cutting. This can be challenging for craftspeople as the blades still obscure the cut. “True” left-handed scissors have both reversed finger grips and a reversed blade connection; they are basically mirror images of right-handed scissors. If someone is accustomed to using semi-left handed scissors they may find using true left handed scissors difficult at first as they may have learned to rely heavily on the strength of their thumb to pull the blades apart vs. pushing the blades together in order to cut.
Some scissors are marketed as
ambidextrous
Ambidexterity is the ability to use both the right and left hand equally well. When referring to objects, the term indicates that the object is equally suitable for right-handed and left-handed people. When referring to humans, it indicates that ...
. These have symmetric handles so there is no distinction between the thumb and finger handles, and have very strong pivots so that the blades simply rotate and do not have any lateral give. However, most "ambidextrous" scissors are in fact still right-handed in that the upper blade is on the right, and hence is on the outside when held in the right hand. Even if they cut successfully, the blade orientation will block the view of the cutting line for a left-handed person. True ambidextrous scissors are possible if the blades are double-edged and one handle is swung all the way around (to almost 360
degrees) so that the back of the blades become the new cutting edges. has been awarded for true ambidextrous scissors.
Specialized scissors
Among specialized scissors and shears used for different purposes are:
Gardening, agriculture and animal husbandry
Food and drug
Grooming
Metalwork
Medical
Ceremonial
Sewing and clothes-making
In popular culture
Due to their ubiquity across cultures and classes, scissors have numerous representations across world culture.
Art
Numerous art forms worldwide enlist scissors as a tool/material with which to accomplish the art. For cases where scissors appear in or are represented by the final art product, see
Commons:Scissors in art.
Film
*''
Dead Again
''Dead Again'' is a 1991 neo-noir romantic thriller film directed by Kenneth Branagh and written by Scott Frank. It stars Branagh and Emma Thompson, with Andy García, Derek Jacobi, Hanna Schygulla, Wayne Knight, and Robin Williams appearing i ...
'' is a 1991 film starring
Kenneth Branagh
Sir Kenneth Charles Branagh (; born 10 December 1960) is a British actor and filmmaker. Branagh trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and has served as its president since 2015. He has won an Academy Award, four BAFTAs (plus t ...
and
Emma Thompson
Dame Emma Thompson (born 15 April 1959) is a British actress. Regarded as one of the best actresses of her generation, she has received numerous accolades throughout her four-decade-long career, including two Academy Awards, two British A ...
in a thriller revolving around repressed memories of scissors.
*''
Edward Scissorhands
''Edward Scissorhands'' is a 1990 American fantasy romance film directed by Tim Burton. It was produced by Burton and Denise Di Novi, written by Caroline Thompson from a story by her and Burton, and starring Johnny Depp, Winona Ryder, Anthony Mi ...
'' is a 1990 film starring
Johnny Depp
John Christopher Depp II (born June 9, 1963) is an American actor and musician. He is the recipient of multiple accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, in addition to nominations for three Academy Award ...
as a young man who has hands made of multiple pairs of scissors.
*''
Running with Scissors'' is a 2006 film based on the memoir of the same title.
*''
Us'' is a 2019
psychological horror film
Psychological horror is a subgenre of horror and psychological fiction with a particular focus on mental, emotional, and psychological states to frighten, disturb, or unsettle its audience. The subgenre frequently overlaps with the related subgen ...
directed by
Jordan Peele
Jordan Haworth Peele (born February 21, 1979) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is best known for his film and television work in the comedy and horror genres. Peele's breakout role came in 2003, when he was hired as a cast membe ...
about a family confronted by their scissor-wielding
doppelgänger
A doppelgänger (), a compound noun formed by combining the two nouns (double) and (walker or goer) (), doppelgaenger or doppelganger is a biologically unrelated look-alike, or a double, of a living person.
In fiction and mythology, a doppelg ...
s.
Games
* The game
Rock paper scissors
Rock paper scissors (also known by other orderings of the three items, with "rock" sometimes being called "stone," or as Rochambeau, roshambo, or ro-sham-bo) is a hand game originating in China, usually played between two people, in which each p ...
involves two or more players making shapes with their hands to determine the outcome of the game. One of the three shapes, 'scissors', is made by extending the index and middle fingers to mimic the shape of most scissors.
* In the horror video game franchise, ''
Clock Tower
Clock towers are a specific type of structure which house a turret clock and have one or more clock faces on the upper exterior walls. Many clock towers are freestanding structures but they can also adjoin or be located on top of another buildi ...
'', there is a character called
Scissorman
is a survival horror point-and-click adventure video game series created by Hifumi Kono. The series includes four games in total. The first entry, ''Clock Tower (1995 video game), Clock Tower'' (1995), was developed by Human Entertainment and r ...
. Although the identity is usually taken by multiple individuals throughout the series, Scissorman is usually portrayed as a demonic serial killer with a giant pair of scissors, and kills anyone without showing any signs of mercy or remorse.
*An
anthropomorphic
Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology.
Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics t ...
pair of scissors appears as a
boss
Boss may refer to:
Occupations
* Supervisor, often referred to as boss
* Air boss, more formally, air officer, the person in charge of aircraft operations on an aircraft carrier
* Crime boss, the head of a criminal organization
* Fire boss, a ...
in ''
Paper Mario: The Origami King''. Various additions of scissor related activity appear as well, such as a variation of Rock paper scissors.
Literature
Heinrich Hoffmann Heinrich Hoffmann or Hoffman may refer to:
Hoffmann
* Heinrich Hoffmann (photographer) (1885–1957), German photographer
*Heinrich Hoffmann (author) (1809–1894), German psychiatrist and author
* Heinrich Hoffmann (sport shooter) (1869–?), Germ ...
's 1845 children's book
Struwwelpeter
''Der Struwwelpeter'' ("shock-headed Peter" or "Shaggy Peter") is an 1845 German children's book by Heinrich Hoffmann. It comprises ten illustrated and rhymed stories, mostly about children. Each has a clear moral that demonstrates the disastr ...
includes Die Geschichte vom Daumenlutscher ("The Story of the Thumb-Sucker") in which a child continues to suck his thumbs despite his mother's warnings about The Great Tall Scissorman.
Augusten Burroughs
Augusten Xon Burroughs (born Christopher Richter Robison, October 23, 1965) is an American writer best known for his ''New York Times'' bestselling memoir '' Running with Scissors'' (2002).
Early life
Christopher Richter Robison was born in ...
' 2002
memoir
A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based in the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autobi ...
''
Running with Scissors'' spent eight weeks on the
''New York Times'' best seller list. The book was later adapted into a film.
Music
*''
Running with Scissors'' is the title of a 1999 album by
"Weird Al" Yankovic
Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic ( ; born October 23, 1959) is an American singer, musician, songwriter, record producer, actor and author. He is best known for creating comedy songs that make light of pop culture and often parody specifi ...
.
*The song "The Tailor Shop on Enbizaka (円尾坂の仕立屋 ''Enbizaka no Shitateya'')" from
Vocaloid
is a singing voice synthesizer software product. Its signal processing part was developed through a joint research project led by Kenmochi Hideki at the Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona, Spain, in 2000 and was not originally intended to b ...
producer Akuno-P tells a story about a tailor that kills a man and his family, whom she mistakes for her unfaithful lover and his three mistresses, using her sewing scissors.
*The
XTC
XTC were an English rock band formed in Swindon in 1972. Fronted by songwriters Andy Partridge (guitars, vocals) and Colin Moulding (bass, vocals), the band gained popularity during the rise of punk and new wave in the 1970s, later playing in ...
song "Scissor Man", later covered by
Primus.
*"
Save Your Scissors
"Save Your Scissors" is the first single from City and Colour's debut album '' Sometimes'', released in 2005. The song features Dallas Green's vocals and guitar, without accompaniment.
Music video
The music video shows Dallas' everyday life livi ...
" – song by
City and Colour
Dallas Michael John Albert Green (born September 29, 1980) is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter and record producer who records under the name City and Colour. He is also known for his contributions as a singer, rhythm guitarist and songwr ...
.
*The song "Scissors" by American Rock Band "Slipknot"
Sport
The term 'scissor kick' may be found in several sports, including:
*
Scissor kick (strike)
A scissor kick in martial arts is any of certain kicking or grabbing techniques that resemble a pair of scissors.
In the Asian martial arts
It may describe a mid-air kick in which both legs are swung or kicked out in different directions to str ...
, a generic martial arts term for any of a number of moves that may resemble the appearance or action of a pair of scissors.
*
Bicycle kick
In association football, a bicycle kick, also known as an overhead kick, scissors kick, is an acrobatic strike where a player kicks an airborne ball rearward in midair. It is achieved by throwing the body backward up into the air and, before d ...
s in
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
are sometimes known as 'scissor kicks'.
*
Swimming
Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, or other liquid, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Locomotion is achieved through coordinated movement of the limbs and the body to achieve hydrodynamic thrust that r ...
strokes including the
sidestroke
The sidestroke is a swimming stroke, so named because the swimmer lies on one's side with asymmetric arm and leg motion. It is helpful as a lifesaving technique and is often used for long-distance swimming. The sidestroke allows the swimmer increa ...
incorporate a leg movement often known as a 'scissor kick'.
Superstition
Scissors have a widespread place in cultural superstitions. In many cases, the details of the superstition may be specific to a given country, region, tribe, religion or even situation.
*Africa
**In parts of North
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
, it was held that scissors could be used to
curse
A curse (also called an imprecation, malediction, execration, malison, anathema, or commination) is any expressed wish that some form of adversity or misfortune will befall or attach to one or more persons, a place, or an object. In particular, ...
a bridegroom. When the bridegroom was on horseback, the person enacting the curse would stand behind him with the scissors open and call his name. If the bridegroom answered to his name being called, the scissors would then be snapped shut and the bridegroom would be unable to consummate his marriage with his bride.
*Asia
**In Pakistan, some believe that scissors should never be idly opened and closed without purpose; this is believed to cause bad luck.
*Western Europe
**As iron was believed to ward off fairies, British parents traditionally hung a pair of iron scissors over cradles to keep fairies away. Sometimes the scissors were kept open to make the shape of a cross for extra protection.
*North America
**United States
***In
, some believed that putting an open pair of scissors underneath your
pillow
A pillow is a support of the body at rest for comfort, therapy, or decoration. Pillows are used in different variations by many species, including humans. Some types of pillows include throw pillows, body pillows, decorative pillows, and man ...
at night was a sound method for sleeping well, even if one is cursed.
*Eastern Europe
**In some Eastern European countries, it is believed that leaving scissors open causes fights and disagreements within a household.
*China
**In China, it is believed that to give scissors to a friend or loved one is to be cutting ties with them.
Science
Scissors have been used in the sciences for various purposes, including descriptions of animals or natural features.
Nature
Animals named after scissors include:
*Birds
**The
scissor-tailed flycatcher
The scissor-tailed flycatcher (''Tyrannus forficatus''), also known as the Texas bird-of-paradise and swallow-tailed flycatcher, is a long-tailed bird of the genus ''Tyrannus'', whose members are collectively referred to as kingbirds. The kingbi ...
of North and Central America.
**The
scissor-tailed hummingbird
**The
scissor-tailed kite
The scissor-tailed kite (''Chelictinia riocourii''), also known as African swallow-tailed kite or fork-tailed kite, is a bird of prey in the monotypic genus ''Chelictinia'' in the family Accipitridae. It is widespread in the northern tropics of A ...
, a bird that is widespread throughout Africa.
**The
scissor-tailed nightjar
The scissor-tailed nightjar (''Hydropsalis torquata'') is a species of nightjar in the family Caprimulgidae. It is distributed over much of eastern South America.
Taxonomy
The scissor-tailed nightjar was formally described in 1789 by the Ger ...
of
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...
.
*Fish
**The
scissor-tail rasbora, several species of fish that are commonly used for freshwater aquariums.
Gallery
File:Scissors (Jian) with Clouds and Floral Scrolls LACMA M.2003.14.jpg, Chinese scissors, early to mid-Tang dynasty
The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an Zhou dynasty (690–705), interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dyn ...
Image:Iron scissors, E Han.JPG, A pair of iron scissors dating from the Han Dynasty
The Han dynasty (, ; ) was an imperial dynasty of China (202 BC – 9 AD, 25–220 AD), established by Liu Bang (Emperor Gao) and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–207 BC) and a warr ...
Image:Skalm 2.JPG, Fiskars
Fiskars Group (also known as Fiskars Oyj Abp or Fiskars Corporation, and until 1998 as Fiskars Oy Ab) is a Finnish group company. The company has its roots in the village of Fiskars (in the town of Raseborg, about west of Helsinki), where it was ...
scissors 1967
File:Borduurschaartje.jpg, embroidery
Embroidery is the craft of decorating fabric or other materials using a needle to apply thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as pearls, beads, quills, and sequins. In modern days, embroidery is usually seen on c ...
scissors in the form of a crane
Image:Schere Gr 99.jpg, A pair of shears
Image:Teppichschere.jpg, Scissors for cutting carpet pile
File:Small Scissors.jpg, These scissors are used in Japan to cut threads in sewing.
File:Scissors Pre 1850.jpg, Scissors Pre 1850s iron from Norway, used to cut cloth.
See also
*
Hemostat
A hemostat (also called a hemostatic clamp, arterial forceps, or pean after Jules-Émile Péan) is a surgical tool used in many surgical procedures to control bleeding. For this reason, it is common in the initial phases of surgery for the initia ...
resembles a pair of scissors, but is used as a clamp in
surgery
Surgery ''cheirourgikē'' (composed of χείρ, "hand", and ἔργον, "work"), via la, chirurgiae, meaning "hand work". is a medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a person to investigate or treat a pat ...
and does not cut at all.
*
Nippers
Nippers are young surf lifesavers, usually aged between 5 and 14 years old, in clubs across Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Unlike senior surf lifesavers, the majority of them do not patrol the beaches. The focus for Nippers tends t ...
cut (break) small pieces out of
tile
Tiles are usually thin, square or rectangular coverings manufactured from hard-wearing material such as ceramic, stone, metal, baked clay, or even glass. They are generally fixed in place in an array to cover roofs, floors, walls, edges, or o ...
.
*
Pliers
Pliers are a hand tool used to hold objects firmly, possibly developed from tongs used to handle hot metal in Bronze Age Europe. They are also useful for bending and physically compressing a wide range of materials. Generally, pliers consist ...
used for holding and
crimping metal or wire.
*
Tijeras Canyon
Tijeras Canyon (sometimes also referred to as Tijeras Pass) is a prominent canyon in the central part of the U.S. state of New Mexico. It separates the Sandia Mountains subrange to the north from the Manzano Mountains subrange (specifically the lo ...
a geological feature in New Mexico, USA and
Tijeras a village in the same canyon, after "scissors" in Spanish.
References
External links
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{{Authority control
Cutting tools
Embroidery equipment
Mechanical hand tools
Sewing equipment