PAPER #4, LING 212 - Semantics

Greetings in Italian Language,

GIUBERTONI Giulia-Nemeye, #200367331
Introduction
This paper discusses and evaluates evidence for forms of greetings in Italian language.
This analysis basically aims to make two points: firstly, that greetings have their own semantic content;
secondly, that forms of greeting are not only performable in different ways, but also conceived differently
according to the language in question.
This topic has the potential to become incredibly interesting for linguists since many greetings are
examples of lexicalisation and carry meaning of which native speakers are very often not aware.
My paper will therefore first define what greetings are, and how they can be defined in semantics.
Later, I will briefly introduce the different ways of conceiving a defined form of greeting in two languages,
that is, how the Italian ciao and English hi differ (due to the limit of six pages). In attempting to do so, I will
mention the NSM approach, proposed by Wierzbicka (2006). At the end of this paper I will also draw a
conclusion on the whole topic of greetings.
1. Greetings and Their Function
Greetings are an important and essential part of languages. They are very often one of the first verbal
competences in L1 speakers and one of the first topics in L2 classes.
In Western countries, it is common to greet other people prior to a conversation, or in case of random
meetings. As aforementioned, this is a characteristic in Western countries; in fact, greeting customs are
highly influenced by culture and may therefore change from country to country. For instance, in some
societies, silence is preferred to greetings, which rarely occur. As a matter of fact, even if those speech
communities present a sort of linguistic indisposition towards greeting such as the Western Apache studied
by Basso (1972), they in truth have verbal expression that could eventually be regarded as forms of
salutations. As a consequence, one could claim that greetings exist in all known human cultures, although
they vary in use and frequency not only among but also across different communities.
It is also important to point out that greetings are not only to be expressed through language (or, as
aforementioned, through its absence). A salutation can also be conveyed physically (through a handshake, a

bow or a nod), or through spoken word and a gesture, such as through a combination of linguistic and nonlinguistic codes.
1.2 What Qualifies A Piece Of Language As A Greeting?
The definition of what qualifies a piece of language as a greeting is not easy. In his studies, Searle
claimed that greetings are verbal formulas which are virtually absent in propositional content (1969). It has
been asserted that greetings are a piece of language which lack in a definite referential meaning (Youssef et
al., 1976). It has also been argued that people are either not believed to mean whatever they say during
salutations or that they lie while greeting each other (Sacks, 1975). All greetings are in fact completely
predictable. In the studies related to this topic, there has been an emphasis on the sequential nature of
greeting exchanges as a series of pairs, and not as isolated acts. For instance, Sacks (1975) study of How
are you? as a greeting substitute gives an interesting perspective on this. His findings demonstrated that if
one chooses to greet through this question How are you?, some interactional implications will happen if his
or her interlocutor decides to answer bad. The first speaker would be surprised by the absence of the lying
and routine-characterised answer fine, which, together with How are you?, can be considered as fixed
formulas.
2. Greetings in Italian
The Italian population is known for being extremely affable, fond of company and, in general,
convivial. As a consequence, Italian people have a high consideration of conversation, even with strangers.
Given the fact that starting and keeping up a conversation with a person is a form of politeness, greeting
them is almost required by Italian social conventions. The greeting in this sense can be seen as a bridge
between people, and an Italian person would add to this that it is unquestionably one of the most elementary
rules of civilized life; it provides the basis for mutual respect and openness to dialogue.
In Italian there are different greetings to be found, and each one of them presents a different usage,
regarding either the time of the day in which it should be spoken or the relation the speaker has with respect
to his or her interlocutor(s). As usual, the words one adopts carry a deeper meaning than what they literally
signify. In addition to this, choosing not to use these greetings, which are linguistically either Noun Phrases
or Verb Phrases, can be taken as impoliteness and a form of affront. Let us now take a deeper look into the
most ordinary greetings in Italian language.

Buongiorno is a formal greeting. Nevertheless, it can work as a friendly and playful form of greeting
in informal contexts. It is normally used in the morning and until early afternoon. Buongiorno can be
analysed as the lexicalisation of the Noun Phrase buon (adj) + giorno (noun), which literally translates into
good day. I believe this greeting to basically represent a linguistic shortcut from the longer and complete
sentence I hope you have a good day, that is to say that it can be regarded as the speakers strategy of
suggesting the I hope you that you have a buongiorno. Buongiorno can be also considered as an
example of lexicalization since a set of phrases (AdjP and NP, and more precisely two stems) has been
added to Italian lexicon (one lexeme).
Buon pomeriggio is a formal greeting, for the afternoon. Its appropriate use varies: in Northern Italy
it can be used after three oclock post meridiem, while in Southern parts of the country it is not used until
after five post meridiem. Buon pomeriggio is not an example of lexicalisation or a compounding noun, since
the AdjP and NP do not form one lexeme.
Buonasera: This is another formal greeting, given to someone met in the evening. Again, like
buongiorno, it can be also considered as an example of lexicalization since a set of phrases (AdjP and NP,
and more precisely two stems) has been added to Italian lexicon (one lexeme). It can sometimes be found
written buona sera, that is to say as two distinct lexemes.
Ciao is an informal form of greeting in Italian, which can be used when either greeting or leaving.
Ciao has become a customary international phrase. It is a friendly, informal phrase, given to people whom
you have met previously. It originally comes from the Venetian dialect, more specifically from the Venetian
word sciao meaning slave. As a matter of fact, in the past, ciao was a reverential greeting, pronounced by a
servant to his owner. Nevertheless, it had been widely used as an informal greeting in Lombardy since the
19th century. It is therefore from the 19th century that it had spread throughout the peninsula, becoming
accepted as a greeting formula. Evidence for this can be found in Niccolo Tommaseos Dictionary of Italian
(composed of eight volumes, published between 1861 and 1874), where he annotated - with some regret this formula I am your slave as form of salutation (Treccani.it). In addition to this, this salutation can be
repeated or reduplicated (e.g. ciao ciao, but not *hi, hi).
Arrivederci: this is the formal way to say goodbye, and is only used when leaving the presence of
another, and it conveys the hope to meet again soon. It can be considered as the lexicalisation of the

Prepositional Phrase a+ri-vedere+ci, which is composed of the preposition a followed by the Verb Phrase
vedere plus the Noun phrase ci (to+see+us). It is also important to mention that the bound morpheme ri
before the VP vedere connotates the verb to convey that these two people hope to meet again.
Pronto: This is the typical greeting used when answering the phone. It is an adjective, meaning
ready. By saying pronto when answering a phone call, one basically means Here I am I am ready to talk
with you.
Addio: This form of salutation can work as both formal and informal. It is used for farewells. Since
farewells are usually given before a detachment that generally lasts a long time, they are conveyed with
sadness and the form addio is nothing but the short form (the Prepositional Phrase a+Dio, to+God) of
the sentence I deliver you to God.
In addition to this, salve is a more formal salutation than ciao but not as formal as arrivederci. It is a
polite greeting, and it is a wish for good health for the interlocutor, instead of hinting at a meaning of
slavery. In fact, salve is the imperative form of the Latin verb salvre, to be in good health and it is
therefore a wish for good health. In the past, it was usually associated with the formula vale atque salve,
meaning farewell and stay in good health.
3. Greetings And Semantics: The Natural Semantic Metalanguage
It appears peculiar that in dictionaries, under a defined form of greetings, one could find information
about its usage, but is less likely to find attempts regarding the salutation meaning(s). Despite their
apparently formulaic nature, greetings have semantic content. In this sense, Wierzbicka claims that forms of
address and greetings convey a paraphrasable interactional meaning consisting of expressed attitudes and
feelings (Wierzbicka, 1992, page 233.)
Speakers will want to carefully select either form of salutation because they are aware of the
particular meaning it has. As a consequence, one could compare the interactional meanings of the English Hi
with the Italian Ciao, more specifically through the methodology of the Natural Semantic Metalanguage,
which is an approach founded on the principles of maximum clarity and universality, by Anna Wierzbicka
(Goddard, 2011). An ideal NSM semantic analysis -often called an explication- is a paraphrase. It is
composed of the simplest possible terms, in order to avoid any case of circularity and obscurity. Technical
terms, logical symbols, or abbreviations are not allowed, and rather substituted with basic and exhaustive

expressions from ordinary natural language. As a consequence, translatability across different languages is
assured, or at least improved.
3.1 The Natural Semantic Metalanguage Methodology
The NSM Approach, or Reductive Paraphrase, originated in the 1960s with the Polish scholar
Bogusawski, and was later developed by Anna Wierzbicka (Cliff, 2011). It is founded on two fundamental
assumptions, as Wierzbicka writes: that every language has an irreducible core in terms of which the
speakers can understand all complex thoughts and utterances and, secondly, that the irreducible cores of
all natural languages match, so that we can speak, in effect, of the irreducible (2006:17).
3.2 Hi, Ciao And The NSM Approach
As a method to analyze hi and ciao and, at the same time, be able to capture the speakers idea about
his or her hearer(s), the mini-language of the Natural Semantic Metalanguage proves to be successful. It
provides all the necessary elements to make such a description in a clear, and intelligible way. Since the
NSM approach is culturally neutral, it serves as a good auxiliary tool for decoding language, specifically
expressions such as salutations, which are very hard to understand in a strict and complex cross-linguistic
context. The NSM also allows a deeper and more accurate analysis of the aspects of the relationship between
the speakers related to the use of different kinds of greetings and forms of address. For instance, it takes into
account important semantic components such as this someone is someone like me, or how I want to say
it, and also what I want to say you now (Farese, 2015, page 4). The emotional aspect is also considered, in
the section what I feel when I say this.
The main aspects that emerge from Fareses studies (2015, page 9) about the English greeting hi are
captured in the following explication:
[A] WHAT I WANT TO SAY TO YOU NOW

I want to say something good to you now

[B] WHY I WANT TO SAY IT

I want to say it because I want to do something like people do when it is like this:
they can see someone somewhere for a short time
they can say something to this someone during this time
they couldnt say something to this someone for some time before

[C] HOW I WANT TO SAY IT

I want to say it in a very short time

[D] HOW I THINK ABOUT YOU WHEN I SAY IT

when I say it, I think about you like this: this someone is someone like me
In his Semantic explication of the Italian greeting ciao, Farese proposes instead five components (2015,
page 14):
[A] WHAT I WANT TO SAY TO YOU NOW

I want to say something good to you now

[B] WHY I WANT TO SAY IT

I want to say it because I want to do something like people often do when it is like this:
they can see someone somewhere for a short time
they can say something to this someone during this time
they couldnt say this to this someone today [m] before
[C] HOW I WANT TO SAY IT

I want to say it in a short time

[D] HOW I THINK ABOUT YOU WHEN I SAY IT

when I say it, I think about you like I can think about someone if I know this someone well
at the same time I think about you like this: this someone is someone like me
[E] WHAT I FEEL WHEN I SAY IT

when I say it, I feel something good towards you

Conclusion
Greetings basically consist of the way (typically, using language) through which humans make other
individuals aware of their presence, or show attention to someone who is already present in a physical
context. In addition to this, greetings can also suggest a type of relationship or a definite social status
between the speaker and his or her interlocutor(s); for this reason, greetings are an important part of the
communicative competence necessary for being an active member of any speech community. This brief and
limited semantic analysis of hi and ciao aims to show that greetings can be conceptualised and performed
reflecting different preferences, which are typical of speakers of that language. A comparison of the
meaning expressed in performance of salutations can also prove to be productive since a culturally neutral
medium (the NSM, by Wierzbicka) has been adopted. A semantic analysis of greetings becomes a topic of
great interest if one considers how it can help avoiding negative pragmatic transfer (Goddard, 2010).

References
Basso, Keith (1972). To Give Up On Words: Silence in Western Apache Culture. In Language and Social
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Goddard, Cliff (1998). Semantic Analysis: A Practical Introduction. Oxford University Press, Great
Clarendon Street, Oxford. Oxford Textbooks in Linguistics, 2nd Edition. Pages 56-57;
Sacks, Harvey (1975). Everyone Has to Lie. In Sociocultural Dimensions of Language Use. New York:
Academic Press. Pages 57-80;
Searle, John R. (1969). Speech Acts: An Essay in the Philosophy of Language. London: Cambridge
University Press.
Wierzbicka, Anna (1992). Semantics: Culture and Cognition. Oxford University Press, Oxford. Page 233;
Wierzbicka, Anna, (2006). English: Meaning and Culture. Oxford University Press, Oxford. Page 17;
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