Next time you say 'Hello', be sure you mean it
Nathaniel Lee"> By Nathaniel Lee - 11 January 2021 - 09:11
Dumela! Sawubona! Molo! Avuxheni! Matsheloni! Good Morning! Goei More! Thobela! Lotshani! Hello! Such is the representation of a simple greeting in some of the 11 official languages of SA, including the twelfth, Tsotsi-taal, and the informal.
Simple though a greeting may be or sound, the symbolism it carries forms the foundation of human relations and may determine the success or failure of the communication process. As Scottish-American naturalist John Muir observed: “How glorious a greeting the sun gives the mountains.” Just like a smile, the symbolism of a greeting is largely universal. A greeting is a gesture of peace and an absence of hostility between and among individuals and groups. The fallout between faithful friends almost invariably results in the termination of mutual greetings...