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Greeting - Greetings are considered to be of extreme importance in Japanese
culture, and students in elementary and secondary schools are often
admonished to deliver greetings with energy and vigour. A lazy greeting is
regarded with the type of disdain that would accompany a limp handshake in
parts of the West.
The main greetings are o-hayō gozaimasu (お早うございます -- good morning --
used until about 11am), konnichi-wa (今日は -- literally, it is today; roughly
equivalent to good day, good afternoon -- used until late afternoon), konban-wa
(今晩は, good evening), and o-yasumi nasai (お休みなさい, good night). Different
forms of these greetings may be used depending on the relative social statuses
of the speaker and the listener; see respectful language, below.
Do
* Bow or shake hands when meeting.
* When parting, instead of simply saying goodbye, make a wish to meet again.
Don't
* Don't simply walk off.
culture, and students in elementary and secondary schools are often
admonished to deliver greetings with energy and vigour. A lazy greeting is
regarded with the type of disdain that would accompany a limp handshake in
parts of the West.
The main greetings are o-hayō gozaimasu (お早うございます -- good morning --
used until about 11am), konnichi-wa (今日は -- literally, it is today; roughly
equivalent to good day, good afternoon -- used until late afternoon), konban-wa
(今晩は, good evening), and o-yasumi nasai (お休みなさい, good night). Different
forms of these greetings may be used depending on the relative social statuses
of the speaker and the listener; see respectful language, below.
Do
* Bow or shake hands when meeting.
* When parting, instead of simply saying goodbye, make a wish to meet again.
Don't
* Don't simply walk off.