BAHCESEHIR UNIVERSITY

SOCIOLINGUISTIC AND ELT

Greeting of Turkish People With Each Other

Ada Berfin Yıldız

ELT4002 Sociolinguistic and ELT

13.06.2021
Introduction

Greeting is a form of communication in which people make their presence known to one another.
Every culture has its own manner of greeting foreigners. It is a type of communication that is
utilized in everyday life and is highly required for membership in any speech community. It's
crucial to remember that cultural norms, social views, and lifestyles differ dramatically across
the country. Localities (rural/urban), social status, regions, nationalities, and educational levels
all varied significantly. In addition, politeness also has a very striking place while people are
greeting. Politeness involves the understanding of different social dimensions as the way of how
formality, status and solidarity are expressed (Holmes, 1992). According to Demir (2012),
greetings provide information about the sociocultural traits of a community, allowing us to see
which expressions or behavioral patterns individuals exhibit during interactions. For example,
when we just meet people, the first impression we get from them is very important. The first
form of greeting sometimes directly affects the continuation of communication. All in all,
greetings vary greatly from culture to culture, and they are occasionally influenced by religion or
their superstitious beliefs. When visiting another nation, knowing how to greet someone can help
us to avoid an unpleasant situation.

https://worldwithtj.wordpress.com/2015/09/30/ways-of-greeting-in-different-countries/

Greeting can be done both verbal and physical. We use words like "hello" when greeting
someone verbally, and we use our body language, gestures and facial expressions when greeting
them physically. Today, the common handshake movement among many societies is interpreted
as a symbol of trust. (Duranti, 1997). However, of course it also represents a physical distance
established between two people. Since the level of intimacy decreases, people avoid the threat of
physical conflict.
In this study, it was investigated how people who know each other prefer a form of greeting
according to various situations. The following questions have been tried to be answered: 1) What
word/phrase do people use when greeting each other? 2) Does the degree of intimacy between
people have an effect on their greeting styles? 3) How do people of different sexes and ages greet
each other? 4) And does social status affect the style of greeting?

Greetings in Turkey

Turkey is a country with a majority Muslim population. There are no official statistics on the
religious affiliation of the population. Unless their parents have registered them to a
constitutionally recognized minority faith, all citizens are automatically labeled as "Muslim" on
their national identification cards. According to this data, 99.8% of Turks consider themselves to
be Muslims (Evason, 2017). Again, between Turkish people, when meeting for the first time,
they usually greet each other with a handshake. But today, because of the current coronavirus
outbreak, a lot of people either prefer verbal greetings or show respect by putting their hands
over their hearts.

Different Types of Greetings

Greetings come in a variety of formats, as previously indicated. Physical (non-verbal), with the
use of body language and gestures, and vocal (with the use of words). Also, as can be seen in
both formal and informal forms, these elements are dependent on interpersonal relationships.
Greetings that are important and act as courtesy, such as "Hello" and "Good morning," are
written in Turkish as “Merhaba” and “Gunaydin” respectively. Direct access terms like
'Sir/darling,' in Turkish as “Beyefendi” and “Canim” and then expressions with more ambiguous
meanings and functions like “Kolay gelsin” (Bonsignori, Bruti & Masi, 2011). In addition, there
are many types of greeting that can be used in the same time period in Turkish. For example, if
we want to say "Good Morning" to someone in the morning, we can say it in a variety of ways;
“Günaydın (Good morning)”, “Hayırlı sabahlar (May your mornings be blessed)”, “Sabah
şerifleriniz hayrolsun (May your blessed morning be full of goodness)” etc. On the other hand,
when anything that the speaker wishes for comes true, other people around say "Gözünüz
Aydın". The statement implies that the others share the speaker's joy and are delighted about it as
well.Of course, these are basically greeting forms that stand out in Turkey. But many research
shows that behind what appears, there are much more.
 https://www.turkishclass101.com/blog/2019/01/12/how-to-say-hello-in-turkish/

Types of Greetings Among Friends

In Turkey, giving one or two kisses to the other person's cheek is a typical welcome among
friends and family. But this is actually a form of greeting shown when a little more intimacy
occurs between two people. Coulmas (1981) defined this intimacy as “pre-fabricated linguistic
units used in a well-known and generally accepted manner”. Standard forms of greeting are
frequent in official situations, but vernacular forms are more popular in casual contexts; people
use more standard forms when they don't know the individual well, and more vernacular forms
among friends (Holmes, 1992). The form of greeting between friends is also, of course, directly
related to the degree of intimacy. For example, if the intimacy between two friends is good, they
may call to each other as "canım (dear)", "bebeğim (baby)" or "kanka, kanki (buddy)".

Types of Greetings Between Different Genders

Men and women are also different in their way of greeting. The way the two sexes reflect their
intimacy can be quite different. Women have a more moderate and warm communication style
than men, especially in terms of non-verbal communication (Eckes & Trautner, 2012). For
example, in physical greetings such as hugs and kisses, women can be observed to be more open
and willing. But many men can only greet the person in front of them with a verbal greeting or
handshake. Being of the same sex is one of the circumstances under which individuals in Turkey
greet each other (Cüceloglu, 2011). Some people may not find it right to act physically when
greeting the opposite sex from a religious point of view. According to Cüceloglu (2011), males
greet each other on the street using the phrase "Selamunaleykum," however women do not use
this statement when meeting with other women.
Types of Greetings Between Different Ages

Because of social relationships and other factors, vernacular forms become more standard as we
get older, and when we get older again, the usage of vernacular forms becomes more common
(Holmes, 1992). In Turkey, when greeting someone in authority (older or superior), it is
customary to give a slight bow or nod. This situation actually represents respect and kindness.
For example, during greetings, elder people come first and treated with more respect. Kissing
them on the right hand and then placing it on our own forehead indicates the sign of respect.
When elderly people talk with younger people, they are more tend to use simple vocabulary and
grammatical constructions (Holmes, 1992). Turkish people can also call people they do not know
closely as ‘abla’ (big sister) or ‘abi’ (Big Brother). This can indicate both love and the distance
of power in the relationship (Evason, 2017).

Greeting Between People of Different Social Status

In general, there is a communication between people whose social status is different from each
other that is established within the framework of respect and there is little intimacy. People in
Turkey from different status are commonly greet each other by saying “Nasilsiniz” (How are
you?) or “Merhaba” (Hello) or "Selamın Aleyküm" (Peace be upon you). Beside that, they are
often addressed by their first name followed with “Bey” for men and “Hanim” for women. For
example, “Ali Bey” and “Birce Hanim”. People with a professional title, not only in Turks, but
also in many countries of the world, expect it to be used, for example, as a doctor or professor.

Data Collection

A survey was created for this study to collect data on the various ways of greeting people in
Turkey. The questions were created with the intention of eliciting and finding variances in the
use of some words and phrases when welcoming others. The findings from the survey allowed us
to see how people greet each other and how their level of intimacy changes the way they
communicate.

Participants

The questionnaire about Turkish greetings was completed by 12 people. 9 (%83,3) of

participants were female and 3 (%16,7) of the participants were male.
The age range of participants was 16-58. But most of them were 21 years old. They were all
from different places around Turkey, but most of them currently lived in Istanbul. 8 (%66,7)
people marked their religion as Islam and 4 (%33,3) people did not want to specify it.

10 (%80) participants had a bachelor degree, 1 (%10) had a master degree and 1 (%10) had a
high school degree. Their occupations were all different; teacher, lawyer, doctor, electrical
engineer, psychologist etc.
Data Results/Findings

1.

The answers to the first question, the type of greeting that participants used most, were as
follows: 66.7% "verbal", 16.7% “hugging”, 16.7% “shaking hands”. This shows that, especially
after the pandemic, most people began to think that verbal greetings would be enough.

2.

The words/phrases that people use most when greeting verbally are as follows: “Selam”,
“Selamunaleykum”, “Helllooo”, “Nabıyoon”, “Nasılsın”, “Naabersin” etc. Of course, these
forms of greeting vary depending on the intimacy between people.

3.

The participants ' answers to the question of how they greeted their close friends are as follows;
“Hello Mello”, “Pşşt”, “Selam Balım”, “Naber Kankiş”, “Merhaba Canım Arkadaşım,
Kardeşim”, “Ahiretliğim Merhaba” etc. At this point, the way they greet definitely changes
according to the generations of participants. Because while participants aged 35 and older have a
more formal way of greeting, it is clear that young people use a more relaxed and specific
language of greeting fit with their period.

4.

When participants were asked how they greeted people older or younger, the responses were as
follows: When greeting with younger people, most of the participants used the word ‘selam’.
Others used the word ‘naber’ or ‘nasilsin’ when greeting with younger people. They used the
word ‘merhaba’ as well, when greeting with youngers. Besides, some of the participants
preferred also physical greetings such as hugging, kissing on the cheek, squeeze in the cheek etc.
They simultaneously used words such as ‘kardesim’, ‘canim’, ‘abim’, 'ablam', 'bebiş' when
talking with the youngsters.

On the other hand, there were participants who used the expression ‘Merhaba/lar’ when greeting
with elder people. They also preferred kissing on the hand as a physical show of respect. They
indicated that they mostly tend to use the expression ‘nasilsiniz?’, ‘herşey yolunda umarım’,
'sağlıklısınızdır inşallah". According to the participants, the reason for this manner of greeting
among younger and older individuals is primarily due to mutual respect, politeness, and age
differences.

5.

When participants were asked a question to reflect their views on whether social status affects
the way they are greeted, the following responses were also received; Almost all participants
agreed that social status affects the way people greet. For example, a participant who is a
manager said that he had official communication with his colleagues because of his social status.
Because he thinks that if he uses sincere language, there is a possibility that people in the
company will not be able to do his job properly, because they will see him as a friend. That's
why he said he believes he can maintain social status among people through proper and adequate
amount of communication.

6.

Finally, when participants were asked how they greeted people of the same and different sexes,
the answers were as follows; When it comes to greeting with strangers whom they met for the
first time, no matter which sexes they are belong to, most of the participants use the expression
only ‘merhaba’ or ‘selam’. However, when it comes to greeting among the same sexes, mostly,
women prefer hugging and saying ‘nasilsin canım?’ or ‘selam tatlim’. When greeting with the
opposite gender, they mainly prefer saying ‘merhaba’, ‘nasılsınız?’ or ‘selamlar’. Also, they may
use handshake as a formal way of greeting.

Conclusion

All in all, each person can have a different greeting style, however, both men and women use the
expressions “merhaba” and “selam” the most in Turkey. It has been used in a variety of daily
tasks and with a variety of people. When addressing different addressees, people choose a
greeting style. Friendship greetings are considered as reciprocal; they both greet each other as
they feel comfortable; we can also notice that there is a lot of use of love terms in friendship
greetings. On the other hand, strangers are greeted in a more official manner, with people using
more standard forms, whilst friends are greeted in a more vernacular form. (Holmes, 1992). As
for the differences in greeting in different sexes, it can be said that women use more intimate
forms of greeting, such as hugging or words of love, while men prefer more formal forms of
greeting, such as a handshake. Looking at the effect of the age factor on the style of greeting, we
can also see that the styles of greeting that people with an age difference use with each other and
the styles preferred by people of the same age can be extremely different. For example, a kiss on
the hand when greeting older people is a sign of respect, while we do not need it when greeting a
young person, a word/phrase or a physical hug is enough. At last but not least, no matter how we
greet, it is extremely important that we use our different way of greeting styles within the
boundaries of respect. Keeping it real can be the key point.

REFERENCES
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Cüceloğlu, D. (2000). Yeniden İnsan İnsana, İstanbul: Remzi Kitabevi.

Demir, M. (2012). Gündelik Yaşamda Selamlaşma ve Yemek Görgü Kurallarının Toplumlardaki

Farklılaşması, 2.

Duranti, A. (1997). Universal and culture‐specific properties of greetings. Journal of linguistic

Anthropology, 7(1), 63-97.

Eckes, T., Trautner, H. M. (2012). The developmental social psychology of gender (ch.10).
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Evason, Nina. (2017). Turkish Culture. Retrieved from https://culturalatlas.sbs.com.au/turkish-

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Holmes, J. (1992). An introduction to sociolinguistic (1st ed., pp. 159-362). Pearson Education

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