The crossed hands gesture is a hand signal that denotes

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

International Sign International Sign (IS) is a pidgin sign language which is used in a variety of different contexts, particularly at international meetings such as the World Federation of the Deaf (WFD) congress, in some European Union settings, and at some UN ...

. Known as shenja e flamurit (flag sign) in Albanian, it is sometimes referred to as the "eagle gesture" and is a symbol used by ethnic Albanians in Albania,

Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...

North Macedonia North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Yugoslavia. It ...

, and other regions of the world where Albanians live. It is meant to visually demonstrate the

double-headed eagle In heraldry and vexillology, the double-headed eagle (or double-eagle) is a charge associated with the concept of Empire. Most modern uses of the symbol are directly or indirectly associated with its use by the late Byzantine Empire, origina ...

, the main image on the

Albanian flag The flag of Albania ( sq, Flamuri i Republikës së Shqipërisë) is a red flag with a silhouetted black double-headed eagle in the center. The red stands for bravery, strength, valour and bloodshed, while the Eagle represents the sovereign sta ...

. The symbolism of the double-headed eagle among Albanians encapsulates their ethnicity and flag, viewing it as a symbol that represents ethnic-Albanian people across the globe. This gesture is often performed by players of the

Albania national football team The Albania national football team ( sq, Kombëtarja e futbollit të Shqipërisë) represents Albania in men's international football, and is governed by the Albanian Football Association, the governing body for football in Albania. Albania com ...

to celebrate a goal or at the end of a victorious game. It has also been used by some ethnic Albanians playing for other teams. The gesture which resembles the double-headed eagle on the Albanian flag, is also associated with Albanian ethnicity where Albanians call themselves as "Shqiptar" (son of eagle) and their country "Shqipëri" (land of eagles). In the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Kosovo-born Swiss players Xherdan Shaqiri and

Granit Xhaka Granit Xhaka (born 27 September 1992) is a Swiss professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Arsenal and the Switzerland national team. Xhaka began his career at hometown club FC Basel, winning the Swiss Super League in each of ...

, both ethnic Albanians, performed the gesture in a match against

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...

and were subsequently fined by FIFA "for unsporting behaviour contrary to the principles of fair-play".

References

Hand gestures Albanian culture Albanian traditions {{Albania-stub