Question

What gives fingerprints their unique characteristics?

Answer 1

Every person has a unique fingerprint which is controlled by there DNA

Answer 2

Every human has a different unique identity that lies on their finger tip, we use this for catching the bad guys and identify yourself at airports or other security places.

Answer 3

they all have different patterns including 3 major types: the whorls, loops, and arcs. they also can have deltas (triangle shapes) , islands (small dot of print) and lines

Answer 4

I think the answer you want is ridge characteristics.