Did you know that the third Thursday in April is National High Five Day? Well, if you did, then you probably deserve a high-five right now. After all, the whole purpose of this holiday is to celebrate that unique hand gesture where two people face each other and strike each other’s palms together in either a congratulatory fashion, as a greeting, or to celebrate the success of one of the persons involved in the gesture.

The Origins of the High-Five

While no one really knows the origin of the high-five, it’s believed to date back to the 1970s and was probably a variation of the low-five—which has been around since at least WWII. However, there are two popular stories that try to explain the origin of the high-five.

The first story states that the first high-five occurred at Dodger Stadium on October 2, 1977, between Glenn Burke and Dusty Baker on the last day of the regular season. This high-five was in response to a home run hit by Baker off Houston Astros pitcher J.R. Richard.

The second story places the origin of the high-five at a University of Louisville Cardinals basketball practice in 1978. Wiley Brown was going to give his teammate Derek Smith a low-five, but the two decided to give each other a high-five instead. After that, the team began giving each other high-fives after each celebration.

The History of National High Five Day

While the origin of the high-five might be a bit dubious, the history of National High Five Day is not. It was created at the University of Virginia in 2002. These students set up a shop on the campus’s main quad and gave out lemonade and high-fives. The idea quickly spread from there, and now people all over the U.S. celebrate this holiday on the third Thursday in April.

Celebrating National High Five Day

The only real way to celebrate National High Five Day is by giving someone else a high-five. If you’re really enthusiastic about it, you can film yourself giving people high-fives and then post it on social media using the hashtag #NH5D. You may also want to treat yourself to a nice glass of lemonade on this day as well. After all, lemonade was served during the very first National High Five Day in 2002.