How to say Hello in Spanish/ Hilokal.com
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How to say hello in Spanish - greetings for friends, and travel

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Introduction

Probably one of the first things we learn when we start speaking is how to say hello. Do you know how to say hello in Spanish? Don't worry; you've come to the right place. Well, here we will teach you how to say hello in Spanish, how to write hello in Spanish and many other greetings. If you know these expressions, you will look like an expert when you travel or speak Spanish online, a good and inexpensive way to practice the language.

Meaning, Pronunciation and Spelling of Hello in Spanish

Pencil in hand, goal in mind/ slideshare.net
slideshare.net


There are many ways to greet people in Spanish. Greetings especially depend on place, social group, age, and time of the day. Let me show you!

Some students have been able to notice this fact, thanks to online language exchange, a very easy and popular way of studying languages nowadays.

Now, how do you write hello in Spanish? In the case of Hello, its equivalent word would be "Hola." This is the basic greeting of all Spanish speakers, it is used to greet children and adults, family, friends, and even co-workers, and bosses, among others.

This is considered an informal word, but it is used very often. And by using it, regardless of whether you know the person or not, whether it is an older person or someone who commands respect, it will not be considered impolite to use it, unlike some other informal greetings in this language.

If we talk about its meaning, the word "hello" could have its root in the English word "Hello" or "Hallo," according to the Royal Spanish Academy.

And although some have given it a meaning similar to wishes for good health (because Salve in Latin is a word that expresses wishes for good health and is usually translated as hello), Hello in Spanish conveys more the idea of a greeting or of making one's presence known, as if to say, "here I am," this would basically be the meaning of hello.

Formal Greetings in Spanish

If you want to say hello in a very polite and formal way, you can do it by using the following expressions:

Depending on Time of Day

  • Buenos días (Good Morning)

This expression is a formal greeting used from early in the morning (5:00 am) until noon (12:00 pm). Its singular version, Buen Día, is more commonly used in Mexico, Central America and the Rio de la Plata area.

  • Buenas tardes (Good afternoon)

The use of this expression is reserved for the period from 12 pm to 6 pm.

  • Buenas noches (Good evening)

This greeting is usually used from 6 pm to 12 am. Like the previous expressions, its meaning conveys the idea of good wishes for that time of the day.

It should be noted that unlike English, where we use two expressions (Good evening and good night) to say hello and goodbye at night, in Spanish we only use Buenas Noches, even to indicate that we are going to sleep.

Other Formal Greetings

  • Hola, ¿Cómo estás? (Hello, how are you?).
  • ¿Cómo estás? (How are you?).
  • Hola, ¡es un gusto conocerte! (Hello, it is a pleasure to meet you!)
  • Encantad@ de conocerte (Nice to meet you)
  • Un placer conocerte  o es un gusto conocerte (It is a pleasure to meet you).
  • ¡Qué bueno que estás aquí! (It's good for you to be here!)

These expressions can be used as a formal greeting and show respect and politeness, as well as interest and sympathy.

Spanish English Speech Level
Hello Casual
How are you? Casual
Good Morning Formal
How have you been? Formal
nice to meet you! Formal
What's up? Informal
Good Afternoon Formal
Good evening Formal
How is everything going? Informal
What are you doing? Casual
What's new? Casual
Everything okay? Informal
How is the family doing? Casual
A pleasure to meet you! Formal
How's life treating you? Informal
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Ready to practice? Let’s find someone to test our Spanish level shall we?

Informal Greetings From Spanish-Speakers

Handwritten: Do you speak Spanish? Image from: bbc.com
bbc.com

A lot of new Spanish learners immediately learn that there are a tonne of different Spanish dialects. They think, 'how am I supposed to know which phrase, or which dialect I should learn?!'. Don't be discouraged, I'll guide you through it in the phrases below.

Mexico

One of the most beloved and popular Spanish-speaking countries. Being a rich source of Spanish variants. Some of the most used greetings are:

  • ¿Quiúbole? Or quiubo, quiubas or quiubalas: This is the most used informal greeting by Mexicans, you could say that its meaning is "How are you?
  • ¿Qué onda? or ¿que pedo?: Another widespread informal greeting, used to know how things are going or to say hi in Spanish. This greeting is very common among young Mexicans.
  • Qué onda carnal or qué onda guey: This is one of the most fraternal greetings of Mexicans. They tend to use it when there is more trust with people, pretty close to the English “dude.” So if they start calling you this way, you can feel like you are among family.

(Note) To respond to these kinds of expressions and play a little with the colloquialisms of the area, you can use simple phrases such as:

  • Muy bien carnal (all fine man!)
  • Todo padre, güey. (everything cool dude!)

Spain

Some of their frequent informal greetings are:

  • Hola, ¿qué tal?
  • ¿Qué tal todo?
  • ¿Cómo andas tio?
  • ¿Qué pasa?
  • Un gustaso conocerle
  • Que gusto verle
  • Hombre, ¿cómo te va?

These are very friendly expressions that can be used with people of different ages without having to border on the informal. In addition, they are usually accompanied by a small handshake or a kiss on the cheek, or both. It depends on the level of familiarity you have.

Argentina

Argentinians tend to use some informal greetings such as:

  • ¡Doctor!
  • ¡Capo!
  • ¡Maestro!
  • ¡Linda!
  • ¿Cómo te trata la vida?
  • ¿Cómo va?
  • ¿Qué contás?
  • ¿Qué decís?
  • ¿Qué hacés?
  • ¿Todo bien?

With these expressions they usually use longer greetings, depending on what they want to convey. For example: Doctor! What do you say? or Linda! What are you doing? Also, depending on the level of familiarity, Argentines may greet each other with a handshake and a kiss on the cheek.

Oh yes, they are friendly people. However, if there is much more trust, they usually hug each other or slap each other on the back in an energetic manner.

Colombia

Colombia is another country with expressions and words unique to its culture. Some of the greetings with which you will be able to communicate and understand Colombians using the region's own dialect are:

  • ¡Q’ hubo! (Que hubo). The meaning behind this expression could be said to be a way of asking how everything is going (in the family, at work, and the like).
  • ¿Qué hay de nuevo?
  • ¿Cómo va todo? or ¿Qué más pues? (It's a way of asking how everything is going in your life).
  • Bien…o qué? (This is a colloquial way of asking if everything is alright).
  • Bien… o no? (With this expression the person wants to know if you feel good or bad).
  • Hola parce, ¿qué tal? (This is a more fraternal greeting among Colombians).
  • Ajá… y tú qué? (This greeting is commonly used in the coastal areas of the Colombian region).

Costa Rica

Among Spanish-speaking countries, Costa Ricans have a rather peculiar way of speaking. The well-known "ticos" generally use diminutives, having the habit of shortening words when speaking. Some of the unique greetings of the area are:

  • ¿Pura vida?: This expression is synonymous with a simple life, something like the well-known "Hakuna Matata" which is a perfect reflection of the attitude and culture of the people of this country. For this reason, the expression "Pura vida" has become a greeting, a way to say that everything is fine, to say goodbye and even to scare away negativity.
  • ¿Qué, mae?: The word Mae, like Güey in Mexico and Pibe in Argentina, is used in Costa Rica to refer to a person with a certain level of familiarity. But Costa Ricans use it in multiple ways, either as the aforementioned greeting, a catchword or even to avoid using names.
  • ¿Tuanis?: This Costa Rican word is the equivalent of the English word cool. They give it a meaning of cool, excellent or Spanish expressions like Chévere in Venezuela or Padre in Mexico. They use it as a greeting to ask if everything is fine. But it is also often used in phrases like, "I know a very ‘tuanis’ nightclub" or " we had a very ‘tuanis’ time."  If you talk to a Costa rican, be sure to tell them their company is very "tuanis.”
  • ¿Todo tuanis?
  • ¡Idiay!: In this case, the word Idiay means, How are you? But it is also often used to ask if something happened or as a catchphrase at the beginning of each sentence.
  • ¿Cómo estás?
  • ¿Todo bien?
  • ¿Qué tal?
  • ¿Cómo me le va?
  • ¿Qué me contás?

Venezuela

Venezuelan colloquialisms are also very original to the region and in the case of informal greetings, some can be used with people of all ages, but others are only used with people of the same age group, otherwise it could be disrespectful or impolite. Some informal greetings that are widely used are:

  • Hola, ¿qué tal?
  • ¿Que tal te ha ido?
  • ¿Cómo has estado?
  • ¡Mucho gusto!
  • ¿Qué haces?
  • Hola, ¿qué es de tu vida?
  • ¿Cómo está la familia?
  • ¿Qué tal cham@ or qué pasó chamo?: This greeting is usually used only between young people or people of the same age but with enough familiarity. In addition, the question "¿qué pasó?", depending on the intonation, can represent hostility.
  • Épale, ¿cómo anda todo?:The word épale in Venezuela is often used as a greeting, a way of calling attention (Épale, I' m here!) or as a surprise (Épale, you scared me!).
  • ¿Qué pasó pana?: This word would be the equivalent of Parse, Güey, Mae or Pibe, mentioned above. It has a friendly connotation and reflects trust towards the person using it. It is used for men and women alike ("él es mi pana" or "ella es mi pana").

Tips on How to Pronounce Spanish Greetings Well

Having good Spanish lessons with a native speaker will certainly help you improve your pronunciation. But (yes, there is a "but") to improve your pronunciation, it is important that you know the right articulation of your pronunciation.

Luckily, the ease of Spanish is that the same way the word is written, it is pronounced…most of the time, there are some exceptions in the consonants, as is the case of C, R and X.

For example:

In Spanish, the C is pronounced in two different ways. One pronunciation has the strong phonetic value of /k/ and the second a soft value of /s/ (in Spain it sounds like /Z/). The first one applies when C is in front of the vowels A, O and U, for example "Casa."

The second applies when the C is in front of the vowels E-I, for example "Ciudad." A word that mixes both pronunciations would be "Conducir" or "Convincente."

As you can see, you only need to know well the pronunciation given to each vowel and consonant of the alphabet. How to pronounce the vowels and consonants of the Spanish alphabet?

Knowing the Classification of Vowels According to the Oral Cavity, Tongue and Lips Disposition

Position of the tongue in the oral cavity according to the vowel. Pressbooks.com
pressbooks.com

The pronunciation of vowels is differentiated from each other because of the arrangement of the oral cavity, the elevation of the tongue, and the arrangement of the lips changes. Unlike consonants, the sound emission is uninterrupted. Taking this into consideration, vowels are classified as follows:

  • Open: When the tongue is held in the lower, lowest part of the mouth and the oral cavity is enlarged to emit the sound (/a/, /e/, /o/).
  • Closed: When the tongue takes a higher position in the mouth, and the sound comes out without the need for a large mouth width (/i/, /u/).

In addition, according to the disposition of the tongue and lips, they can be:

  • Front and acute: If the tongue curves forward and the lips retract (/i/, /e/).
  • Back or dark: when the tongue is retracted posteriorly, and the lips are brought forward (/o/, /u/).
  • Mid: the vowel is pronounced without modifying practically any organ of phonation (/a/).

You can see this for yourself if you try to pronounce the vowels; you will notice how the organs of the oral cavity change depending on the vowel you articulate.

Knowing the Place and Manner of Consonant Articulation

The consonants have a more complex classification. They are divided according to the place of articulation in the cavity where the lips or the tongue are located:

  • Labials: On the lips (/b/, /p/).
  • Labiodentals: The lower lip at the edge of the upper incisors (/f/).
  • Interdental: With the apex of the tongue between the upper and lower incisors (/z/).
  • Dental: With the apex of the tongue on the inside of the upper incisors (/d/, /t/).
  • Alveolars: Applying the tongue to the alveoli of the upper incisors (/s/, /l/, /r/rr/, /n/).
  • Palatal: When the tongue is applied to the palate (/ch/, /y/, /ll/, /ñ/).
  • Velars: In the veil of the palate (/g/, /k/, /j/).

Classification according to the manner of articulation:

  • Plosives: that come out suddenly from the momentary closure of the buccal cavity (B, P, D, T, G, K).
  • Fricatives: When there is a narrowing of the oral organs where the air current passes producing a friction (F,Z, S, Y, J).
  • Lateral: When there is a central obstacle and lateral openings (L, LL).
  • Flap or Tap: When the closing and opening happen quickly (r, rr).
  • Affricates: The sound is occlusive at the beginning and fricative at the end (CH).

You won’t need to give this long classification to native Spanish-speakers, but it will be useful for you to learn to pronounce the words perfectly.

The parts of the oral cavity and classification for pronouncing consonants/ Image from: objetosnuham.mx
objetosnuham.mx
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Learning the correct articulation of Spanish words doesn’t have to be difficult. Find a Spanish native speaker and start practicing! 

Conclusion

We started with the pronunciation and writing of Hello in Spanish and ended with a variety of greetings in this rich language, according to the speech of several Spanish-speaking countries.

I hope you found the article helpful, and don't forget that practice makes perfect. If you practice and get to learn the little technicalities of the Spanish speech that we have mentioned, rest assured that you will be able to pronounce hello in spanish and communicate like a native.