Why do we say "hello"?

Word nerds RobWords and Jess Zafarris welcome you to the first ever edition of Words Unravelled with an episode all about greetings:
👋Where does the word "hello" come from?
🇮🇹What's the surprising original meaning of "Ciao!"?
🇹🇭Why did Thailand officially change its national greeting?
🇫🇷What are the yucky origins of Ça va in French?
These questions answered, and many more, in the first episode of Words Unravelled.
👂LISTEN: podfollow.com/words-unravelle...
or search for "Words Unravelled" wherever you get your podcasts.
==LINKS==
Rob's KZbin channel: / robwords
Jess' Useless Etymology blog: uselessetymology.com/
Rob on X: x.com/robwordsyt
Jess on TikTok: tiktok.com/@jesszafarris
#etymology #wordfacts #English

[@rodintoulouse3054]

It’s so refreshing to see you both. No shouting, respect, smiles, well researched stories and not uninformed opinions, loved it!

[@RobWords]

Glad you liked it! Thanks for watching.

[@stephencrowther524]

😂😂😂

[@StamfordBridge]

Now I’m trying to imagine what it would look like to see Rob loudly shouting down his interlocutor. 😂

[@jayblossom5349]

As I child, I noted that in "The Chronicles of Narnia," "hullo" is almost always used as an interjection indicating surprise, not as a greeting. "Hullo, what's this?"

[@flybeep1661]

I Flemish Dutch were we say Hallo as a greeting (like German) it can also be used in a totally unrelated context. If you finish a sentence with "hallo zeg" which translates to "say hello" it is expressing a feeling of indignation. For example: Die man zat mij te beledigen, hallo zeg. --> That man was insulting me, say hello. In the same way you can also say "Hallo zeg, wat is dit?" -> Say Hello, what is this?" To express indignation as well.

[@smorrow]

Sherlock Holmes

[@smorrow]

Although it's spelled halloa in Holmes

[@RingsLoreMaster]

And then there's the character in t h White's "The once and Future King" who constantly uses "hello" at the end of sentences

[@KaiHenningsen]

@@flybeep1661 German and English can do that with just the word hallo/hello, or in German you can also use "aber hallo", all with the same sense as what you expressed in Flemish Dutch. The single-word version often dramatically lengthens the second(German)/first(English) syllable of hallo/hello, almost giving it an entirely new syllable.

[@RanaRene2022]

The reference of “ciao” deriving from “sciavo” meaning “ slave” is like in some parts of Germany you may hear, “ Hallo, Servus” with that same mentality of I am your humble servant.

[@chrisis123]

Inndeed, it's mostly a Southern German as well as an Austrian thing, Servus is a very common greeting and can be both used for hello and good bye and is literally a Latin word meaning the same thing.

[@TheSmallFrogs]

Likewise in Swedish. A common colloquial greeting is "tjena", which is short for "tjänare", or servant (cognate with German Diener).

[@jerkl1256]

Coming originally from the austrian army as a greeting

[@arcuscotangens]

I've once heard that comes from "Servus Christi" = "servant of Christ"

[@pdyt2009]

"Servus" doesn't mean anything like "humble servant". It's not servile. It's "friends, buddies, companions, comrades". That is, peers.

[@berlindude75]

That origin of "goodbye" from the contracted phrase "God be with you" ("godbwye") blew my mind. For some reason I had never looked it up.

[@Pippis78]

It's so natural to assume "bye" was already a word by that point. Quite surprising finding out "bye" came from "be with you"!

[@KenFullman]

Back in the 60s my grandmother told me it was short for "god be with you" so it's something I've known all my life. Something she'd tell me off for is using "oi" to attract someone's attention. Apparently that is supposed to be quite rude but I don't know why. It sounds no more offensive than "hay"

[@CatharinevonHollenfe]

Question. Rob you told in one of your videos, that "ye" is a "wrong-writing" or more a result of a bad handwriting of the "th". So might it be, that "goodbye" --> "god b(e) w(ith) ye (=you)", as you mentioned at aproximatly at 27:55 ... is maybe "god be with ..." ... I think of "go with god" ... Learning English many many years ago, I thought "goodbye" was once written "godby" --> "god next to you" ... still like the idea And now to something completly different. The German "Grüß Gott", had always something final for me. My instinct reaction is "no, I don't want to... not now..." Thx

[@TheMDJ2000]

Australians almost universally greet each other with “g’day”

[@Dodo-bf3dm]

In the US, when we are hiking a popular trail, we often greet the strangers we pass with a simple nod, or a quick hi or hello. In Australia, G'day was very common, as was a friendly how ya goin'

[@leoniefindley4391]

Never use it 😂

[@Cerby1365]

Or... How's it hanging? Lol

[@kittykaz7161]

G'day, how, ya go'en? We know how to abbreviate. And ooroo, for goodbye.

[@johnboyd6943]

I've always known the greeting to be 'gidday' being a shortened version of 'good day', at least that's what my school English teacher told me 60 years ago.

[@Mimrix]

Greetings! I'm Czech and we use „Ahoj“ (Ahoy) ALL the time. It's a paradox considering that we're landlocked. Also we use „Čau, Čaues , Čauky, Čus“ etc (Ciao) Both at the beginning and the end of a conversation. We also use „Haló“ for a distant call or a reassurance of someone's presence on a phone... Also the „salam“ greeting is quite funny to me as it means bacon in Czech.

[@WordsUnravelled]

Glorious! Thanks for this. R

[@breandandalton8564]

Interesting. Though isn't Čus from German tschüss? I could be wrong!

[@MuppetsEatCats]

"Ahoj" really sounds quite funny when you're hiking on the German side of the border around Elbe and then decide to try the Czech side :) (On the German side it's mostly "Hallo" and "Servus")

[@jhdix6731]

"Salam" for "bacon". Is that somehow related to the word salami?

[@mc-not_escher]

Ahoj (English Ahoy) is also said in parts of Slovenia, but not very much, more often “zdravo” or “živio” depending on context. Goodbye is almost always “se vidimo” or “se slišimo”, maybe “adijo” or “nasvidenje”. Very contextual.

[@mjau0374]

What a nerd fest. I love it!

[@generaledelogu1892]

Now it makes sense why Hobbits say "Hullo" in LOTR! Can't wait for more episodes!

[@MichaelJohnson-vi6eh]

Wow. I now remember that people would greet each other in a formal way with "at your service" "your servant" ciao. I am a great consumer of RobWords and this format is fantastic. My mother absolutely said -"Hay is for horses"

[@ThePyramidone]

Goodbye in Japanese - Sayonara (Formal); Bai Bai ( bye-bye), Jaa Ne (see you later), or Mata Ne ( see you later) (Friends or Family); Ittekimasu (I'm leaving now) (used when leaving home or office); Ojama Shimashita (I have disturbed you) (used when leaving someone's home).

[@suchanhachan]

Be careful, though. "Ittekimasu" literally means "I'm going and then coming back", so at the office you could use it if you were going out to lunch or for some errand, etc., and planning to return. But if you're leaving because you've finished work you would probably just say good-night, "O-yasumi nasai". And if you're leaving but other people are still working, especially people you work closely with, people might also say "O-saki ni shitsurei shimasu", or "O-saki ni" for short, which means "I'm sorry/excuse me for leaving before you"...

[@smallwisdom8819]

Sayonara is used in situations rather rare for non native Japanese speakers. For example at a preschool . e.g. "sensei sayonara". Ojama shimashita? That one feels unfamiliar, never heard that in the past form, but it well likely exists. Hard to say what I would use. Probably depending on whose home I am about to leave. If the person is close I would have likely had some food and say (gochisousama deshita, "it was a feast") and maybe "iroirona arigatou ne" (thanks for all different kinda things). In a more formal situation I'd use "shitsurei itashimasu" (I'm being rude). And if I really felt like almost overstaying my welcome, maybe living at someones place for a few days or even weeks, I'd say "taihen osewa ni narimashita." (You cared for me very much).

[@niclaatz]

Fascinating, in South African Afrikaans we say "Ja nee"(yes no) when there's no immediately appropriate response. For instance: Statement: "My lewe is deurmekaar (My life is in a shambles)" Response: "Ja nee" - avoids a potentially inappropriate or insensitive response.

[@smallwisdom8819]

@@niclaatz Well in Japanese Jaa and Ne, have only indirect reference to yes/no. "Jaa" is used to change a topic or just to make your wish to speak being recognized (instead you can also use the "dewa"-sound (romaji - transcription "deha"). and "ne" is an attempt to get an agreement on what was said (like in: "isn't it"?, so here is some slight no/not feeling, this usage of "ne" also exists in some german regions in that context, so possibly in dutch/afrricaans too). So the phrase is probably translatable to ("Uhm, well...-it's time to say bye for now-...you know, right?")

[@kittykaz7161]

I thought sayonara, was " goodbye, we may never meet again for a long time"

[@mounamounayer4818]

My favourite hello-type greeting is in Arabic Syrian (Levantine) dialect - SHLONAK? - which is a contraction of “shou lawnak”: what is your colour? I.e., what's your mood? My next favourite is the way hello is said in Lebanon, where most people speak a mix of Arabic, English and French (very colonial): Hi, Kifak, ca va!

[@SplendidMisanthropy]

Came for Rob, stayed for Jess.

[@stevosteffano5577]

When Rob clarifies that 'my dear' (from 'me duck') does not imply any particular intimacy, it reminded me of the Cornish 'my lover' / 'me lover' which again is affectionate but not romantic in anyway. To outsiders like myself being addressed as 'lover' is memorable and, well, lovely.

[@erineross1671]

I am Canadian 🇨🇦(first generation ). Am I right that “duck” or “ducky” is an endearment for children?? Or maybe it’s because my dad was British, from the area that Rob hails from…

[@PaulBednall]

@@erineross1671 I live in the same area as Rob was originally from and "duck" is used for children and adults alike.

[@anitapeludat256]

Chao is quite common in Germany by Germans.

[@pauljordan4452]

@@erineross1671 I use bird nicknames as endearment (flight, serenity, caring ideas). Someone is nicknamed Duck because they resemble one.

[@jerrytracey6602]

"Love" is used in West Yorkshire in place of "mate" or "pal" used elsewhere, between people of both opposite and the same gender. It seems odd to me, as a man from outside of West Yorkshire, to hear a male railway worker answer "platform 4, love" in response to my query as to where my train is departing from

[@Conancm]

In the UK Black Country (and also in parts of Gloucestershire) 'How bist' or 'Ow Bist thee' is still used . Very good link back to OE and Frisian/Low German. The answer is traditionally ''Bay too bah" -

[@WordsUnravelled]

Wow! I had no idea "bist" was still in our language. Marvellous. R

[@RingsLoreMaster]

I am most curious. Is the "Shire" , in "Gloustershire" - in the Black Country - pronounced "sure" or "shyre"?

[@russellbaker7098]

@@RingsLoreMaster that depends on where you come from. Where I live in the middle of the southern UK, the Shire part is pronounced Shuh with no R at all. Further west they'd use probably Sure as you suggest. Other parts of the UK will vary

[@stephencameron8118]

My favourite greeting comes from Ojibwe: aanii (pronouned Ah Nee or Ah NEE) and means "I see your light" Wonderful video! Thanks so much for making this!

[@NEEDFULSTRINGSLLC]

I like this podcast idea. Please keep it here on KZbin

[@middangeard374]

I love etymology, and the two of you make it even more enjoyable. Looking forward to more episodes!

[@WordsUnravelled]

More to come! Thanks for watching R

[@anteov]

31 minutes of such an interesting knowledge. In my language, swedish, the most common greeting word is "hej". In high school I was told that this word dated back to the viking era and was brought back in the begining of 1800, right after Sweden lost Finland to Russia.

[@yertletheturtle5843]

I love the Terry Pratchett/Neil Gaimen book Good Omens: Crowley: Ciao! Ligur: What's that mean? Hastur: "Ciao", it's Italian, it means "food".

[@aphryo]

Pronto meaning doing something quickly in English more likely comes from the Spanish "pronto" meaning "soon". Great discussion. Love it.

[@darcydrury9018]

For a pair of word nerds, you both have wonderfully expressive faces. Ironically, this is a good lesson in non-verbal communication.

[@joeviolet4185]

If ciao means slave, it has the same meaning as the bavarian / austrian servus you can use instead of both hello and ciao. Servus is also understood in all other countries that once belonged to the austro-hungarian empire. Another greeting which is used in a frequently rather extended time frame around noon, I'd reckon practically in the whole of Germany, is Mahlzeit, which literally means meal time. Since it is used around lunchtime both when you meet someone and when you part, it may come from wishing "a good meal" either to come or to have had. In the company I worked in it was sometimes used the whole day over, even during night shift, and under all circumstances, even in workshops, where nobody was having a meal nor expecting to have one soon.

[@Siansonea]

"Hallo, how's ya poo?" is now canon. 😁

[@WildStar2002]

That greeting is the shit! 💩

[@bloob318]

Ça va?

[@peterfenwick2540]

In South Africa a very common greeting is "howzit".

[@bradnelson3595]

I am your obedient servant, Rob and Jess. Thanks for the presentation.

[@SuprousOxide]

Always loved when I learned in German that the standard sign-off on the phone is "Auf Wiederhören", till I hear from you again (as opposed to auf Wiedersehen, till I see you again) . Since i learned this in school, and 30 years ago, i don't know if it's actuallly a common phrase today, but i like it

[@marcom2248]

The prases "Auf Wiedersehen" and "Auf Wiederhören" is very formal and only used by the old people. We use the word "ciao" or "tschüss".

[@agentrikamcgee]

In Filipino, a common greeting we use equivalent to hello- most usually seen in the tourism industry- is "mabuhay", which literally means "to live". So when those people at the airport greet you like that, it's like an invitation to live in our country, amongst our people. Which sounds quite lovely imo. And one way to say "goodbye" is "paalam"- more literally, it means to ask permission or to let someone know something. In this case, you're letting them know you're going on and asking permission to leave. Which is rather polite lmao. It's a bit of a shame we don't really use these day to day tbh. Most Filipinos have some command of English so we tend to greet each other in English, like "Hi!" or "Good morning po!" ("po" being a generic term we add for respectful speech).

[@HenryNavarroManof2moro]

My new favorite podcast? I think so!

[@WordsUnravelled]

Hooray! Thanks for listening. R

[@lisakinney7043]

One of my all time favorite lines from literature (Dumas) is when D’artagnan is dying, he says “Athos - Porthos, au revoir! Aramis, adieu!"

[@kevinmcqueenie7420]

I live in Japan, so here are some common ways to say goodbye: matta ne (most common, something like "see you later") matta ashita (usually said like "ma ta shta" - "see you tomorrow") Both of the above are sometimes preceded by "ja", or "jaa", similar to saying "Well, ..." bai bai (said just like "bye bye" and mostly used by kids and young people) Good job with this! Was refreshing to just see two intellectually curious people sharing knowledge and being cheerful and likeable. Pleasant change to a lot of media these days!

[@WordsUnravelled]

Matta ne was the one the barman told me to use! Thanks for the reminder. R

[@kevinmcqueenie7420]

@@WordsUnravelled yeah, it’s the go to! (And comes from the -ta form of matsu - to wait, so literally means something close to “please wait”!, but used like “see ya”!)

[@garyswan]

In Doric (spoken in the North East of Scotland) we commonly say 'Fit like?' as a greeting, meaning 'what like', or 'how's things'. A reply could be 'Nae bad. Foo's yersel?' meaning 'not bad. And how are you?'. An alternative is 'Aye, aye' which translates as 'Yes, yes' but just means hello. Really enjoyed the first episode of the new channel.

[@WordsUnravelled]

Love "fit like?"

[@omniglot]

I've also heard 'Foos yer doos?' ("How are your doves?") in Doric.

[@garyswan]

​@@omniglotThat's one that you see on lists of Doric phrases, or reproduced on tea towels and mugs, but it's not one that I ever hear to be honest. It would be interesting to know if any other Doric speakers use it regularly in normal conversation.

[@rogerokeeffe213]

Literally the same as Spanish "¿Que tal?"

[@MISATHROPIC]

We Hungarians know that the word hello (Hungarian: halló) comes from Hungarian "hallod?" , meaning "do you hear?". (Hungarian "hall" means to hear) Because at the building of first telephone centers were many Hungarians involved. like Tivadar Puskás. So they were asking over the line "hallod?", do you hear? can you hear?

[@maxturgidson568]

So next episode…. “No, yeah”. And “yeah, no” .

[@NoHairMan]

Yay Edit: when you explained the curious origin of "Ciao" it immediately reminded me of the (southern) german greeting "Servus". Seems like they have the same origin/meaning. Very nice podcast format, keep it up! :)

[@napoleonfeanor]

Well it goes more directly back to Latin servus but I commented on the similarity,too.

[@RobWords]

I hadn't thought of that, you're so right!

[@mzaliwa]

Swedish "tjänare"

[@Quzinqa1122]

​@@mzaliwa😁 "Tja ba!"

[@pjlaraujo]

19:40 Interesting. In Portuguese the word "thank you" changes depending on the gender of the speaker: obrigadO for men and obrigadA for women.

[@JaymoJoints]

The literal translation in English is obliged, which you hear often enough in Texas as 'much obliged' with an implied subject (I am). So it's an adjective, which in Portuguese must agree with the gender of the subject -- in this case the speaker.

[@dirty_deeds3523]

Amazing

[@capndave9152]

I refer you to the Bristol Stool Scale used by Gastroenterologists to gauge you health on the appearance of your stool.

[@davewalter1216]

I love this - two professionals who love their profession going on gleefully.

[@SambagsStockpot]

Ey-up, Me Duck! Loving the new channel (Words Unravelled). Words and their origins are fascinating 🤓

[@svensorgenfrey9859]

„Hie thee hither“ (Macberh I, 5). I should definitely use this more often!

[@KevinMichael-realtor]

There is a great Seinfeld episode where Kramer was promised a hello by the bank or he wins $100. Long story short it is a clever compilation of all the ways you can acceptable greet someone in English.

[@anishkandelYT]

Thanks Rob for this. I can listen you for hours and hours. The clarity you possess while speaking, very few people do that.

[@mizapf]

The German term "Fernsprecher" is common among people that celebrated their 100th birthday recently. Honestly, almost everyone says "Telefon" today. ... Thinking a bit further about that, the younger ones would rather say "Handy" or "Smartphone", they just don't have that stationary device anymore.

[@wac4259]

The term Fernsprecher is outdated, right, but we still use Fernseher (Farseer) for television very commonly.

[@aerodesic1]

I am glad this was recommended. Looking forward to more.

[@billyo54]

Salutations Rob and Jess. This is wonderful. I so look forward to more of these podcasts. I'm Irish and good morrow was used by my father's generation quite frequently. It was usually reduced to a simple 'morrow as in 'morrow boys. Before the Ulster Plantation there was an attempt to plant Munster with the English. This failed as a lot of the newly 'planted' English were quickly absorbed into the Irish language and culture. As a result we in Munster have retained a lot of archaic English in our speech such as Forenenst meaning in front of me or opposite me.

[@RobWords]

Fascinating stuff, thank you!

[@joyhancock2703]

At school, we had to sing from Nelson's New National Songbook. One of the songs was 'Good morrow gossip Joan, Oh where have you been walking, I have for you at home, a budget full of talking'.

[@francespettigrew9646]

I have never seen the word " Forenenst" written down before. My Dad always used to tease Grandma about her Irish accent. She was from the Ottawa Valley in Canada. Was that word only used in Munster?

[@billyo54]

@@francespettigrew9646 I believe forenenst is used in Ulster Scots also. Though an archaic word I believe it to be used regularly by those of a certain generation. I still use the word 'ye' when referring to you in the plural. I feel contemporary English has jettisoned too many words which were both colourful and descriptive, alas.

[@patbyrne6644]

Forenest and Good morrow are also used in Wexford in the southeast. 'What way are ye?' is a common greeting here also

[@dabneyapplechunks]

In Mandinka, at least at the time I learned to speak it, greetings were generally long and formal, starting with “Kor’ tanante?” Which meant “Hope you have no problems!” Followed by detailed enquiries about the person’s family and where they are, etc. Some younger people would ask “I be nyaadi?” meaning “How you doing?” And there were different sequences of questions in different parts of the region (Senegal and Gambia, Mali…) But each question had a prescribed answer, and learning the right answers was a trip at first. The right answer to “Where’s your family?” was “They are here”, and the right answer to “Any problems?” Was “No problems”. I caused much hilarity when I answered the “Any problems?” question with “They’re here!” Things may have changed, because Mandinka wasn’t a written language at the time.

[@mc-not_escher]

I studied Spanish in high school, and our teacher taught us both “¡Hola!” and “¿Que tál?” My parents also taught me a bit of Slovenian, like “živio” and “se vidimo” among other basic words and phrases.

[@michaelwillever3522]

Love this immediately!

[@annwagner5779]

That is all! Love it! I so look forward to more podcasts in this great new series!

[@mothoin]

Great vid. Regarding God be with you: in Irish the greeting is Dia dhuit which also means God be with you. The reply is often Dia agus Muire dhuit 'God and Mary be with you. A funny story I was once cycling on Inis Mór one of the Irish speaking islands off the coast of Galway and Clare and passed a group of Japanese tourists. I wished them Konnichi Wa as I whizzed by. Without missing a beat they greeted me back with 'Dia dhuit'.

[@rogerokeeffe213]

Yep, it's hard to be an atheist in Irish! See also "Bail ó Dhia ar an obar" (a blessing from God on the work) if a person was working. Note that we were taught two forms of goodbye. The basic word is slán (safe/in good health), but you were supposed to say "slán leat" to a person who was leaving the meeting-place, but "slán agat" to the person staying put: may safety accompany you vs. may safety be with you!

[@exvagoergosum]

Hi Rob, as a Frenchman I totally confirm what you said about "ça va" . it's even funnier nowadays as modern medicine seems to realize eventually that our "belly is our second brain". Somehow, poop-snooper doctors where centuries ahead of their time 😄

[@Becky_Cooling]

I love learning about etymology and the quirks of language, so this podcast is right up my street (and Harry potter is an amazing bonus!)

[@coreyejensen]

I was surprised Hey / Hej didn’t make it into the conversation, given the Scandinavian influence on the English language.

[@joeldcanfield_spinhead]

My natural in person greeting is "ey" as in "hey" without the h.

[@joeldcanfield_spinhead]

though it's the entire point of the last 90 seconds of the video.

[@TracySmith-xy9tq]

My brother used to answer the phone: Yes? Curt, but to the point.

[@cynthiajohnston424]

In the 1997 movie " Wag The Dog " , the Dustin Hoffman character , Stanley Motss , answers the phone by saying " Speak words " . Love it !! 😅

[@ferdi5407]

Really enjoyed your relaxed and informative style. Looking forward to more videos!

[@funkyjbass7762]

Also "Salute" meaning "safe" makes perfect sense. The idea of a salute is to show you don't have a weapon in your hand (right hand because right handed bias). Tanks salute by pointing the barrel as low as can go, planes salute by flying in a formation that can't be used for attack - all showing that they are "safe".

[@FalchionHawk]

What a great series! Excellent work.

[@Bertramthe5th]

Oh, I did enjoy this! I will be looking for more. Thank you for a very enjoyable watch/listen. 😊

[@jamesbusald7097]

You guys have a lot of fun together; its fun to watch.

[@nooripuss1]

I love your podcast, one of my favorite topics!

[@drjthornley]

Utterly fascinating. Brilliant.

[@FaridTaba]

This was lovely! Long time fan of RobWords ❤ Keep it up 😊

[@daviddickason6729]

looking forward to more content by both of you - thanks for this!

[@StrawHatsAreFashionable]

A little fun fact to add to »ciao«: In Bavarian the most common greeting is »Servus«, deriving from the identical Latin word meaning »slave«. Just like with »ciao« the speaker means to express »I am at your service« but it's become a relatively casual greeting or goodbye.

[@WordsUnravelled]

I heard "Servus!" in Nuremberg a few months back. Charmed the heck out of me. R

[@goooooorkyo]

Brilliant! Been following Jess on tiktok for a while and it's great to see worlds collide!

[@farmergiles1065]

Hey, have to add a snippet from recent history. In the U.S. anyway, "hey" as greeting overturned "hello" as the commonest form in the 1970s, at least among the young. It was an embrace of the wildly popular TV comedy "Happy Days" and its unconventional major character "the Fonz" (Henry Winkler). His unvarying entrance was "heeey", said with extended inflection and downward pitch so as to exhibit and project complete confidence and utmost coolness. The under-text was "look at me, I'm here, isn't that cool?" It wasn't overbearing, but it made clear who was top dog, and it was impossible to challenge because that would make you too uncool, and no one wanted that. In the larger context, that was the reaction invoked in the younger set, children and teens (Fonz was early twenties). To adults, particularly parents, it was a challenge to their authority because of his denial of convention. But he was always smooth and ingratiating, polite to his own elders, always in the coolest way. Hence, the teacher's objection to kids using "hey" as a greeting, and their insisting upon "hello". And that was the biggest pushback I ever saw at the time myself. Everything else was bound to collapse into mean-spiritedness. It was all attitude. You couldn't say hi; it had to be cool.

[@suchanhachan]

Speaking of single-word conversations, there's a comic strip called Zits and the main characters are a teenaged boy and his friends. I remember one strip where he and his friends have an entire conversation using only the word "Dude". They use it as a greeting, as a way to offer to share something, to say "Thank you", to express surprise, etc., and finally as a way to say "Good-bye"...

[@JohnFlower-NZ]

Sweet

[@davidnewell897]

@@JohnFlower-NZ kzbin.info/www/bejne/bWjZkIRmos2VkLc

[@RingsLoreMaster]

I take it that all the terns are male. If not, the women have been left out. Otherwise, why the word"dudette"?

[@litigioussociety4249]

I'm surprised they didn't discuss "Hail." I don't know the history of the usage, and when it was popular or lost favor, but it shows up a lot in the old versions of English bibles like Wycliffe and King James.

[@marryof995]

@litigioussociety4249 But in English it’s still used sometimes to call a taxi no ? To hail a cab ?

[@dmac7128]

"Hail" is still used in maritime/naval contexts. If a ship wants to communicate with another, it will "hail" them. Calls to communicate are referred to as "hails".

[@davidchilds9590]

'Hail fellow, well met' is now used only jocularly, but Shakespeare used 'Well met' (and 'Ill met' (by moonlight)).

[@shibolinemress8913]

I think "hail" comes from the same root as the German "Heil", which means "healing", or in religion, "salvation". It's mostly used in Christian contexts these days. I think the English word "whole", in the sense of "complete", also comes from "heil". In English, "hail" is still used in naval parlance, as well as in Star Trek ("hailing frequencies open"). 🖖😁

[@Escapee5931]

I always assumed a greeting such as "Hello Robert" came from something like "Hail, o Robert".

[@maciulisian595]

This was excellent. Hit subscribe right away. Well done, Rob and Jess!

[@nataraja87]

This was amazing, you guys are a pleasure to listen to!

[@Blade_Daddy]

When I lived in Madrid Spaniards answered the phone with "diga me" '- "speak to me".

[@Drew-ks9ue]

Hello! I am so excited ‘Useless Etymology’ has a podcast! I write poetry and often begin by researching the origin of words, ie. coda, a poet’s ‘summation’ at the end of a poem means tail, what fun!!!

[@jakejacobsen5000]

I love you guys. Thanks for the outstanding lessons.

[@HLR4th]

This was delightful!

[@cTc10691]

Most common greeting where I'm from in Ireland is probably 'well boy?', or 'well girl?', or just 'well?' on its own. Just like how 'how're you?' as a greeting is not really a question, 'well?' isn't really a question either, but the response is the same, just well also.

[@allanlees299]

I've always enjoyed RobWords since discovering it on KZbin. Now I have double the pleasure. Thanks to you both.

[@teespeck3285]

such a lovely show, keep up the great work!! ❤

[@Starman2319]

Liking this format. Most enjoyable and informative, Rob. Well done both. Keep it here on KZbin. Ciao 😁

[@WordsUnravelled]

Will do! Rob

[@tony.999]

Enjoyed this! I always thought Ciao was more exquisite and haven't heard it that often down south! "Take it easy"!

[@phillipkopp5809]

I've always loved words and I enjoyed every second of this video. Thank you.

[@WordsUnravelled]

Thanks for watching! R

[@nicolasdenz4292]

This was a fun and educational way to spend a half-hour. Loved it. I am on board for more!

[@matthewheap9658]

In the Royal Navy, when a routine 'pipe' is made over the main broadcast in a warship, the first words are usually "D'ya hear there?...", with the conclusion almost invariably being "That is all!"

[@milemarker301]

Love it, such a fun idea. I've read Lexicographers' books, where they make fun of us civilians who are enamored by etymologies. They smugly call us smug. Silly. Humans are curious, we want to know the past use of words. Words are ideas. Ideas evolve. So glad you two are starting this series, ty :)

[@equesdeventusoccasus]

On "hey", I've always heard "hey is for horses, straw is cheaper, grass is free." Of course some add a final bit to that, "hippies smoke it, why can't we?"

[@LysSylva]

Thank you both, enjoyed it very much (and learned something too) 🙏🙏🙏

[@HoTaiBodhi]

This is great! Just the area I loved most about my English curriculum! I'm already a superfan! Thanks!

[@Language_Guru]

"Pronto" in American English is borrowed from Spanish. "Pronto" means 'soon' or 'quickly' in Spanish.

[@aureaphilos]

I picked up "Ciao" when I was studying in Nice, France, and traveling in Italy. Forty years later, I still use "Ciao!" in casual situations.

[@aureaphilos]

BTW, I'm the only person I know in Vermont who uses "Ciao", but everyone seems to understand what it means... Cultural diffusion through movies, I suspect.

[@johanmagnusson2672]

In Swedish, we sometimes say "hej hopp", though usually considered a bit silly and and used tongue-in-cheek.

[@jabberwockytdi8901]

Or in northern UK also sometimes "Hey-up"

[@avlebjurn]

Swedish also have the greeting tjena/tjänare, which also means serv/servant.

[@7rollface]

Oh yes, more of this please. Two knowledgeable people enjoying being told things they didn't know about an interesting subject.

[@jerrytracey6602]

We still use "ey up" in Yorkshire as a warning as well as a greeting. It's also used, I guess in the warning sense, to ask people to move out of the way, often followed by, "Coming though!".

[@davidfrischknecht8261]

I remember when I was reading one of the Little House books that when one of the characters came across the Ingalls' house he yelled out "Halloo the house!".

[@lysancasilvestris4449]

I think I read "halloo the house" in Diana Gabaldons novels and loved it.

[@peggygraham6129]

This is also used in Outlander

[@langdalepaul]

Wotcha (or wotcher?) was pretty common when I was young, and I think it was common in cockney. It also features in that campfire song, “gin gan goolie”.

[@Deadcat_.]

This was just great. I was sad when it ended because I felt it was just scratching the surface. I am looking forward to the next one.

[@gardnerwest-bound5353]

The Czechs also say: "Ahoj" (ahoy) for hello. Ahoy is also a naval greeting/challenge. When a boat is approaching a naval ship, the quartermaster shouts to it: "Boat ahoy!" If there is an officer aboard the boat, then the response is: "Aye-aye!" If the captain of another naval ship is in the boat, the boat coxswain would reply: with the name of the ship from whence the captain is coming. This is an ancient vocal form of "IFF" (Identification Friend or Foe), as well as a lead time for the ship to prepare to properly receive the officer or Captain in the boat.

[@maxhoffmann6821]

In Swedish, there is a slightly slangy greeting, “tjänare” (sometimes shortened to ”tjena” or even “tja”) 🎉which is an abbreviation of “jag är Er ödmjuka tjänare” = I am your humble servant.

[@dmac7128]

Salute makes a a lot of sense as an expression of greeting. In military custom, the origin of the hand salute dates back to medieval times when armored knights would raise their visors upon approaching each other to identify themselves and signal intent. This was a common form of greeting between knights.

[@Pippis78]

Finnish has a greeting that supposedly has a rather surprising origin - "Moi!" It's a very casual greeting, basically like "Hi!" except even more casual. Apparently it travelled into Finnish from the Dutch! Not a super close neighbour. In Dutch they greet "Moin!" and it just means "beautiful!" An older greeting in Finnish is "terve!" which quite literally means "healthy". The word meaning "a greeting" even is "tervehdys". But what is _actually_ fascinating is that the word for health seems to be derived from the word for tar - "terva". It was heavily associated with health as were trees in general.

[@charleighblue]

In parts of Germany they say Moin too!

[@frankhooper7871]

@@charleighblue Yep - I've heard Germans say it...but never Dutch LOL.

[@beauwilliamson3628]

I learned 'Moi' in a visit to Finland, and 'Moi-moi!' when answering the phone. When I tried to use it on an old Finish woman here in Canada who had emigrated in 1940, she didn't believe me - as she had never heard Moi used.

[@88marome]

"Hallå" in Swedish is often used as an objection to something, like "Hallå! Why are you drawing on the table?"

[@stevekeiretsu]

Grew up saying "wotcher" in East Anglia in the 80s, always assumed it was a contraction of "whatcha been up to?" or similar. Amazed to discover our playground slang was actually shakespearean!

[@StamfordBridge]

Seven minutes in and my mind has been blown several times.