Our digits come in very handy at times. You might say our fingers were the original “digital” age.
The human thumb is very useful, especially since it is opposable.
Next to it is a finger that, long ago, was called the towcher (the finger that touches), the foreman, or the pointer.
Then in the middle we have the long-man, or long finger. It is more commonly called the middle finger nowadays.
Then comes the lech-man (medical finger used for stirring potions), also called the ring-finger (digitus annularis). Its power is said to have come from the later disproven belief that it has a nerve that goes from that finger straight to the heart. On the strength of that belief, it also became the ring finger.
Last of all we have the little man, or little finger.
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Some fun anecdotes:
In the German language a thimble is called a Fingerhut – a “hut” (hat) for the finger.
The custom of holding up one’s finger to make a bid in an auction comes from the Romans.
The Finger Benediction:
In the Greek and Roman Church, the thumb and first two fingers represent the Trinity. The thumb, being strong, is the Father; the long finger is Jesus Christ; and the first finger is the Holy Ghost (which proceeds from the Father and the Son). The gesture of the three fingers together is often used in the benediction at the end of church services.
I used to really like that part (the benediction) because it meant that I had survived another sermon without falling asleep.