Shift key originated in 1878 Remington typewriter

The shift key made its debut on the Remington No. 2 typewriter in 1878, according to The Hindu. Before this, typewriters either had only capital letters or bulky dual keyboards for lowercase and uppercase. The shift key mechanically moved the type mechanism, letting a single key produce both lowercase and uppercase characters as well as symbols.

Pressing the shift key physically shifted the typebar to strike the paper with the capital letter or special character. This innovation reduced the number of keys and improved typing speed. Later, typewriters added two shift keys for convenience and introduced a Shift Lock mechanism, the predecessor of today's Caps Lock key.

Though the shift key now works through software rather than mechanics, its name and core function remain unchanged from the 19th-century invention. The design has persisted on every modern keyboard.