In Alma 31:26 it says that "when Alma had said these words, that he clapped his hands upon all them who were with him. And behold, as he clapped his hands upon them, they were filled with he Holy Spirit." According to Hugh Nibley the word "clapped" is an interesting word here, isn't it? To clap means to put your hands firmly on something. The Old English word is clippyon and it is related to grab, grope, and gripe, [German] kleben. They mean to grab firmly . . . The old Anglo-Saxon use "to clap" his hands on his head doesn't mean he applauded this way. He put his hands firmly on their heads when he set them apart is what happened. [Hugh W. Nibley, Teachings of the Book of Mormon, Semester 2, p. 435]