Greetings

I have never been one to use slang terms of greeting, prefer more formal greetings. Not that I’m against such, it just isn’t ‘me’. But that doesn’t stop the etymologist in me wondering when 'Hi' and other greetings became popular as a greeting, and examining the origins.

Hello, as a greeting, dates from 1848 and began in the US of A; although the term was used much earlier (albeit seen as hallo, holla, hollo) from at least the 14th century when used simply to attract attention. The rise in popularity, from around 1880, corresponds to the spread of the telephone – this cannot be coincidental.

Hi, the earliest record is from 1862 in the written speech of a Native American from Kansas. This is not to say it was anything but English and is almost certainly from Middle English hy. Hiya is simply an extended form, seen since the 1940s.

Good morning is seen from the early 15th century, prior to that it was ‘Good morrow’.

Good afternoon has been recorded since the early 14th century, rather surprising to find it earlier than the morning version.

Good evening is even earlier still and has been around since the Saxon era.

How do you do – is a formal greeting from 1632.

How’s it going – a more casual greeting seen since the early 17th century.

How are you – is first seen in print in 1666, courtesy of William Killigrew’s play Selindra: A Tragy-Comedy

Hey has been around since the early 13th century when, rather than a greeting, was used to indicate anger, derision, or a challenge.

What’s up – has appeared in fictional works since the early 20th century, although it was never really used in general conversation until it became the catchphrase of Bugs Bunny as ‘What’s up, Doc?’

Howdy appears in print from 1720 as ‘howdy’ee.

G’day is the abbreviated version, often associated with Australians, of goodday, seen since the early 12th century.

Long time no see is seen for the first time in print in 1843 in James Campbell’s Excursions, Adventures, and Field-Sports in Ceylon - although it was not used as a greeting for at least another fifty years.

What’s new – popularized by the song composed in 1939, but a form of greeting since the early 19th century.

What’s happening has been used as a greeting from around the 1920s.

Yo is a greeting used by sailors since the early 15th century.

And we should also mention the non-verbal greetings. The nod, the smile, both fairly obvious – but what about the raised eyebrows? Eyebrows as a form of communication are particularly eloquent; surely they would have conveyed messages and moods at least as early language developed – and it is tempting to think they may even have pre-dated same.

Top Idioms

Several words have become part of the language in being used in phrases. Last time we looked at ‘bottom’ and now, of course, look at ‘top’.

From the top, as in from the beginning, is seen as early as the late 14th century. Whilst it may be seen as an Americanism, it can’t be because the earliest forms are before they used English and before the Europeans really knew it existed.

Top of the morning, as a greeting, is first recorded in 1843.

Top of the world has been seen since the 1670s.

Top of the line has only been used since 1950.

Off the top of one’s head is first recorded in 1939.

Top off, as in to finish, is used first in 1836; while the sense of ‘to fill up’ dates from 1917.

Nobody paid top dollar until 1942.

Top drawer, in the sense of ‘the best’, is not used before 1920.

No recording made the top ten until 1942.

Top notch has been seen since 1841, and was once used for a part in umbrella manufacture.

Nothing was top heavy before 1530; although the same phrase was used to mean ‘drunk’ around 1680.

Box tops has been used since 1937 – if you’re too young to remember, people once collected box tops (as proof of purchase) and sent them off to claim a free gift or coupon.

Nobody was described as top dog before 1868.

Top coat was the outer garment from 1804, but not used in decorating until 1959.

Top sail, a nautical term, has been known since 1400.

Roll top, a type of lid used on desks, has been seen since 1884.

Table top has only been seen since 1914.

Over the top is a World War One reference to the onset of an attack.

Treetops are unknown before the late 15th century – of course trees had them, they just weren’t described as such.

Nobody wore a top hat until 1875.

Tip top, as in excellent, is first seen in 1702.

Tank tops were not worn until 1968, but did exist earlier when they comprised the upper part of a swimsuit.

Rooftops first appeared in 1610.

Topsoil suddenly appeared in 1789.

Topknots have been described as such since 1680.

Countertops have been used since 1878.

What On Earth? (Or Venus)

Or not on Earth as the case may be. I was looking at the names of our planet in languages other than English. It came as something of a disappointment to discover they were mostly translations of 'earth' in the sense of 'soil, dirt'.

So I decided to look elsewhere in the heavens and see what names other languages had given to the remaining seven planets in orbit around our sun. Below is the language, its name and, where possible, the translation. Many nations simply use the same name, albeit with the phonetic spelling reflecting local pronunciation. As these clearly come from the same source as the English names, I have concentrated on the alternatives and this time the planet Venus.

Albania - Aferdita - 'the morning star'
Arabic - Zuhra - comes from the Arabic root meaning 'to shine'.
Aztec - Li - as far as written records show, this was the only planet the Aztecs were aware of - although it seems impossible they were not aware of Mars, Jupiter, Mercury and Saturn, too. They knew Venus as association with two of their gods, depending upon whether they saw it as the Morning Star and Quetzalcoatl, or the Evening Star and Xotol. Both gods were worshipped for centuries before the Aztecs and there is no reason to believe any of the Mesoamerican peoples and their religions saw the morning and evening appearances as two different planets or gods.
Babylonian - Delebat - associated with Istar, the goddess of love, sex, beauty, war, justice and political power also known as Inanna, she is entirely the same representation as Venus and/or Aphrodite.
Bengali - Shukra - is a figure in Hindu mythology, the name derived from a Sanskrit word meaning 'clear, bright', certainly an apt description of the planet's appearance to us here on the Earth.
Farsi - Naheed - is again a different name for the same goddess, one whose talents are identical to those of Venus.
Gaelic - Ribhinn - is from the Old Irish word rigan 'queen'.
Greek - Aphrodite - the Greek personification of Venus
Hawaii - Hoku-oa Vallis - is simply the Hawiian name for 'Venus', however it is worth noting it is also the name of one of the valleys on our so-called 'twin planet'.
Hebrew - Nogah - is derived from a word meaning 'splendour, light' and a very good description of the planet's appearance from Earth.
Japan - Kinsei - kin is 'gold' and another comment on how bright it appears in our skies.
Kazakhstan - Sholpan - is a translation of 'Venus' and also 'planet'
Korean - Geumseong - 'star of gold'.
Malayalam - Shukran - from a Sanskrit word meaning 'clear, bright'.
Mandarin Chinese - gumsing - the gold planet
Maori - Meretuahia - 'the evening star'
Mongolia - Tsolmon - and is associated with sugar and Friday.
Old Czech - Krasopani - probably a simple translation.
Sanskrit - Sukra - 'clear, bright'.
Sumerian - Istar - the goddess of love and war
Tahitian - Taura - translates as 'memory'.
Welsh - Gwener - the name of Venus here translates as 'morning'.

Note the spellings and characters used are English, so don't write to me pointing missing umlauts, accents, etc. or how I should have used a different alphabet.