South Asia Greetings

How many ways can you think of to say hello? How a South Asian says hello depends on his or her religious and cultural background. Below are some of the most commonly used greetings in South Asia.

Many Hindus throughout South Asia greet one another by saying “namasté.” The Hindi word “namasté” literally means “I bow to you.” Hindi is the trade language in northern India. Hindus say “namasté” for hello and goodbye, similar to “aloha.”

         
A more formal Hindu greeting, “namaskar” is used to show respect. In Hindi, “namaskar” means “I bow to your god.”

         
Muslims in South Asia greet one another with the Arabic words “salām alékum,” or “peace be upon you.” The appropriate response to this greeting is “valékum as salām,” which means “and also on you.” Muslims in Bangladesh and Pakistan use this greeting, but you will also hear it in India, home to 151 million Muslims. Muslims say “salām alékum” for hello and goodbye, similar to “aloha.”

Christians throughout much of South Asia use this phrase to greet each other. It means “Victory to the Messiah.”

       
South Asia’s 21 million followers of the Sikh religion greet one another by saying “sat sree akaal jee.” This Punjabi phrase literally means “God is truth.”
        
     
Tamil is one of the many languages spoken in India. The Tamil word for “hello” is vaņakkam.

     
In Sri Lanka, people greet each other by saying Ayubowan. This greeting literally means 'may you have long life.' It is used for both hello and goodbye.

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