- A major element of your digital identity is your Twitter handle.
handle
noun; other word formation type widening
A person's username on Twitter. Handle meant a citizens' band (CB) radio user's nickname in CB transmissions, especially among truck drivers in the 1970s. Possibly originally a metaphor, since this name and a physical handle are both used to grant access or communication. Twitter decided to adopt this term to refer to its users' names following the @ symbol.
Etymology : Metaphor and widening from Old English "hand" and the suffix -le, indicating a tool.
Source : Twitter - July 2013
Last modified: 25 November 2013