Greeting is an act of communication in which human beings (as well as other members of the animal kingdom) intentionally make their presence known to each other, to show attention to, and to suggest a type of relationship or social status between individuals or groups of people coming in contact with each other. While greeting customs are highly culture- and situation-specific and may change within a culture depending on social status and relationship, they exist in all known human cultures. Greetings can be expressed both audibly and physically, and often involve a combination of the two. This topic excludes military and ceremonial salutes but includes rituals other than gestures.
Greetings are often, but not always, used just prior to a conversation.
Some epochs and cultures have had very elaborate greeting rituals, e.g., greeting of a king.
Secret societies have clandestine greeting rituals that allow members to recognize common membership.
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A greeting can consist of an exchange of formal expression, a simple kiss, a hand shake or a hug. The form of greeting is determined by social etiquette, as well as by the relationship of the people.
Beyond the formal greeting, which may involve a verbal acknowledgment and sometimes a hand shake, facial expression, gestures, body language and eye contact can all signal what type of greeting is expected. Gestures are the most obvious signal, for instance greeting someone with open arms is generally a sign that a hug is expected.[1] However, crossing arms can be interpreted as a sign of hostility. Facial expression, body language and eye contact reflect emotions and interest level. A frown, slouching and lowered eye contact suggests disinterest, while smiling and an exuberant attitude is a sign of welcome.
Throughout all cultures people greet one another as a sign of recognition, affection, friendship and reverence. While hand shakes, hugs, bows, nods and nose rubbing are all acceptable greetings, the most common greeting is a kiss, or kisses, on the cheek. Cheek kissing is most common in Europe and Latin America and has become a standard greeting in Southern Europe.[2]
While cheek kissing is a common greeting in many cultures, each country has a unique way of kissing. In Russia, Slovenia, Serbia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro the Netherlands and Egypt it is customary to “kiss three times, on alternate cheeks.”[3] Italians & Hungarians usually kiss twice in a greeting and in Mexico and Belgium only one kiss is necessary. In the Galapagos women kiss on the right cheek only[4] and in Oman it is not unusual for men to kiss one another on the nose after a handshake.[5] French culture accepts a number of ways to greet depending on the region. Two kisses are most common throughout all of France but in Provence three kisses are given and in Nantes four are exchanged.[6] However, in Finistère at the western tip of Brittany and Deux-Sèvres in the Poitou-Charentes region, one kiss is preferred. [7]
Voicemail greetings are pre-recorded messages that are automatically played to callers, when the voicemail system answers the call. Some voicemail systems allow for different greetings to be played to different callers.
Most languages have alternate greetings to be used over the telephone. In this case, the greeting is meant to confirm whether the person on the other line is present.
The term "greeting" may also refer to a pre-recorded message replayed when the call cannot be answered.
| Country/Language | Owner answers phone | Caller's response |
|---|---|---|
| Argentina | Hola? | |
| Belgium and The Netherlands | using first and family name, sometimes only the first or family name is used. | Hallo met "name of caller" |
| Brazil | Alô? | Quem está falando? |
| Canada - Québec | Oui, allô? | Bonjour ! C'est (appelant) puis-je parler à (appelé) s'il vous plait ? |
| China - Hong Kong | Wei / 喂 | |
| Catalonia | Digui? | |
| Finland | Haloo? | |
| France | Allô? | |
| Germany | using family name, often with first name | |
| Hungary | Halló, jónapot kívánok! / | Halló, tessék! |
| Iceland | Halló? | |
| India | Hello | Hello! |
| Iran | Alo. / Baleh? | |
| Israel | Shalom. | |
| Italy | Pronto. Chi parla? | Pronto. Sono <caller>, Parlo con <called>? |
| Japan | Moshi moshi / もしもし | |
| Japan | Hai / はい | Dochirasama desuka? / どちら様ですか？ |
| Japan | Hai / はい | Dare desuka? / 誰ですか？ |
| Korea | Yeoboseyo? / 여보세요? | Nuguseyo? / 누구세요? |
| Malta | Hello? | Min hemm fuq il-linja? |
| Mexico | Bueno. | ¿Con quien hablo? |
| Mongolia | сайн байна уу? | sain baina uu? |
| Paraguay | Hola. | Hola. ¿Con quien hablo? |
| Poland | Słucham. / Halo? | |
| Portugal | Está? | Quem fala? |
| Romania | Alo? | Cine e? |
| Russia | Slushayu vas. (Allyo?) / Слушаю вас. | |
| Spain | Diga/Digame. | |
| Spain - Catalonia | Digui? | |
| Turkey | Alo? (Efendim?) | Kiminle görüşüyorum? |
| Venezuela | ¿Aló? | ¿Quien habla? |
| Vietnam | A-lo? |