Classifying Chinese Salutations Essay Example

The Chinese language has one of the most commonly spoken languages in the world other than English, so It is no surprise that many people have been working hard to learn and perfect their Chinese.

Salutations are among the first words a foreign learner will meet and learn, however in Chinese (as well as basically all other languages) there are different types of salutations and ways people and greet each other, each with different implications. 

When it comes to classifying these salutations there are many different ways, nevertheless, there are still two main entry levels of classification and that would be the basic ones (the ones that are most commonly used and are universally understood) and the more complex ones (the ones that usually helps separate you from other foreigners. Meanwhile, it is also important to understand that these are only the broadest way of classifying and there are many sub-sections inside these classifications.

First, off the basic/entry-level salutations or greetings includes stuff like hello (你好.您好) and goodbye (再见). These include many of the ones taught in essential Chinese lessons like “你好吗“ some of these can often be directly translated and used in other languages like English without having grammar or understanding issues, phases like good morning (早上好) or other greetings that take into account the time of day and so on. Meanwhile, these phrases aren’t even used that often by Chinese people as they sometimes come off a bit awkward and weird. Furthermore, these salutations are usually paired with a wave or a shake, usually used when the individuals aren’t that close, as these salutations lack in flavor as well as intimacy (doesn’t demonstrate that you know the person very well). Overall, these types of salutations are very fundamental and are understood by everyone and people will understand what you are trying to do, however, this will usually greatly decrease your Chinese verbal intelligence in the eyes of the person you are trying to talk to.