Greetings

The most common greeting is hadih. Note the final /h/, which differentiates it from the similar word hadi', which is an expression of surprise.

You can also say bundada' hoonzoo “good morning”. It is not usual to say “good day”, “good afternoon”, or “good evening”.

There is some dispute as to how traditional it is to use these greetings. Many elders say that “good morning” is not traditional, and some say that even hadih is not tradtional.

People alive today remember hearing bozoo for “hello”, a loan from French bonjour, which is no longer in use.

The usual way of saying “good-bye” is Nanyoost'en' la. or Nanyoost'en' si.. These literally mean “I'll see you (one person) again”. To say “good-bye” to more than one person you say Nanohoost'en si!. You can also say “good night” 'Ulhd̲z̲is̲ hoonzoo!.

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