Why is home row called home row?

Answer 1

In my younger days,we had row houses.They were all in a row and all looked the same. as in mill hill houses.The mills would build houses and rent them to the mill workers.There is an old saying "I owe my soul to the company store" this also came from the mill hill villages where the mills owned the houses,stores,everything!!

ADDED: As a Transatlantic difference, if these what I think they are - all joined into a long, single building - in the UK they are called "terraced" houses. Although an 18C concept they did become particularly associated with 19C industrial (not just mill) towns, but a lot of modern housing developments now are of terraced form.

The "company store" ethos was used in Britain too, but its inherent unfairness led to its legal abolishment under a 19C law I think called the "Truck Acts".

Answer 2

The "home row" of a keyboard is called as such because, when typing correctly, it is the default position for the fingers to return to when they're not busy typing. In proper typing, your fingers should start on the "home row" (a, s, d, f, j, k, l, ;) and reach for the other keys; they should never have to reach for the keys on the home row.

Answer 3

When you type in the manner normally prescribed by typing teachers, you are supposed to keep your fingers on these keys while they are at rest. Since you only move your fingers from these keys temporarily to hit the other keys, and then fingers return to this row, the row is like a home for your fingers. Because the row is like a home, it is called the "home row."

Answer 4

It is the row of keys that you put your fingers on when you type.