'Hello' as a telephone greeting

[ThisYearsGirl]

Why, out of all the salutations in the English language, is "hello" the common way to answer the phone? When did it come into vogue? Why is it so wide-spread?

[Earl Snake-Hips Tucker]

The Word Detective on "hello"

http://www.word-detective.com/back-l2.html#hello

BTW, a town in TX instructed all town employees to start answering the telephone "Heaven-o" instead of "hell-o." Don't know if that's still going on.

[lno]

I know I saw this in one of Cecil's books, but I can't find the article in the archives. So, off to google.

Who invented Hello? (http://www.pitara.com/discover/5wh/online.asp?story=184)
And my favorite, the folks who want to use 'heaveno' (http://www.heaveno.com/greeting.htm) because in 'hello' "The "O" is not enough to hide the most negative word (Hell) printed in every dictionary!". On the plus side, they've got a nice little evolution of the word from 'hallow' all the way to 'heaveno'.

[Hail Ants]

My high school spanish teacher told us that, in Spain, they answer the phone, "Dime", which means "Tell me".

[Padeye]

Ahoy-hoy?

[ThisYearsGirl]

Originally posted by Hail Ants
My high school spanish teacher told us that, in Spain, they answer the phone, "Dime", which means "Tell me".

I know in some Spanish speaking countries, they answer with "Alo," which is like Hello, but with a Spanish accent.

[Lady Ice]

I prefer the way my late grandfather used to answer the phone.

"Ernie's Mortuary, you stab 'em, we slab 'em."

My grandfather used to get a lot of hangups for some reason:D

Damn, I miss that man.

DRG

[samclem]

The Who invented Hello? (http://www.pitara.com/discover/5wh/online.asp?story=184) site borrowed entire phrases(embarassingly so) from the Word Detective site of Evan Morris. I sent Evan an e-mail. Hate it when people can't at least rewrite things in their own words.

[Markxxx]

Ahoy hoy. In case there are Simpons fans here.

Monty Burns says this when he answers the phone. Because before the telephone hello wasn't in common usage.

When it was invented they wanted to use Ahoy-hoy as the way to answer it.

So it is a jab at how old Mr. Burns is.

[fandango]

Originally posted by LNO
I know I saw this in one of Cecil's books, but I can't find the article in the archives. So, off to google.

Who invented Hello? (http://www.pitara.com/discover/5wh/online.asp?story=184)
And my favorite, the folks who want to use 'heaveno' (http://www.heaveno.com/greeting.htm) because in 'hello' "The "O" is not enough to hide the most negative word (Hell) printed in every dictionary!". On the plus side, they've got a nice little evolution of the word from 'hallow' all the way to 'heaveno'.

Both sites said that T.A. Edison was the one to first say "Hello" on the phone, however I always heard it was Elisiah Grey (or Elijah Gray...or something similar) who created a telephone device but lost on the patent to Bell by mere hours. Bell wanted to use "ahoy-hoy" as the greeting, but Grey preferred "Hello"

[mhendo]

Hail Ants wrote:My high school spanish teacher told us that, in Spain, they answer the phone, "Dime", which means "Tell me".

That's true. They also say "digame", which means the same thing, but is formal and more common among elder people, according to my Spanish professor. Some even more informal people even answer by saying "si".

[For those who don't speak Spanish, "dime" is not pronounced like the American ten-cent coin, but is said more along the lines of "dee-may"]

[Johanna]

Moshi moshi

Where'd that Japanese phone-answering phrase come from?

[andygirl]

My best friend's father always answers the phone with "shalom," which is odd only becuase I'm expecting to hear "hello."

[jaimest]

What I can't figure out is why people in Mexico answer with "bueno"(good).

[Qwertyasdfg]

I believe that the spanish also answer the phone with "pronto" which means "soon."

Or am I confused?

[Alessan]

Originally posted by andygirl
My best friend's father always answers the phone with "shalom," which is odd only becuase I'm expecting to hear "hello."

That's even odder when you realize that most Israelis answer the phone with "Hallo".

[matt_mcl]

In French, they use the word "allô", which is only used in this context (and similar ones like loudspeakers, two-way radios, and whatnot...), as well as in reproaching a person who's Lost In Space, like we would say "Hello-oooooo!"

Their more common greeting is, needless to say, "Bonjour/soir" or "Salut".

In Esperanto, similarly, "Ha lo" is used to answer the phone, but "Saluton" is the general greeting.

[Joe_Cool]

Originally posted by jaimest
What I can't figure out is why people in Mexico answer with "bueno"(good).

bueno is also commonly used to mean "OK", "yes", or "go ahead". I understand it for phone answering to be closer to that usage than to "good".

[kniz]

The question was why "hello" not how do the Spanish answer the phone. I wonder if the French perhaps say "Oui", but see there you've got me doing it!

HELLO answer the damn question!

[Major Feelgud]

I know one guy in Italy, he also answers the phone "Pronto".

[DrMatrix]

I always answer the phone pronto, if I don't the answering machine picks up.

[Tony]

Originally posted by Qwertyasdfg
I believe that the spanish also answer the phone with "pronto" which means "soon."

Or am I confused?


I can't say for sure that certain Spanish speaking countries don't use "pronto" to answer their phones, but I do know that this word is used by Italians. In the Italian language it means "ready."


And can anything be more retarded than those "heaven-o" people? Afraid of a word because it has another word within it? Perhaps we should start talking about turtle sheavens and refer to Greeks as Sheavenenes. Geez!! I'm a firm believer that only people who have at least three working brain cells should be involved in the shaping of language and the evolution of it and its words. If I was told to answer the phone with heaven-o, I'd tell them to go to heaven.

The o is not enough to hide the word hell! :rolleyes:

[Tripler]

I've been somewhat 'groomed'. I like to answer my phone and let you know who you've called, what extension you've got me on, and a positive greeting to indicate that you can begin speaking your intent:


"Oswald LMT, go ahead!"


Tripler
And if you don't believe me, call me on my cellphone.

[Tedster]

When phones first became somewhat widespread, at least among the well-to-do; there was a bit of controversy over their presence in a home and the proper etiquette in their use.

Many felt the intrusion extremely gauche, since there was no way of identifying just who, or whom, might be calling. The nerve! The phone will ring, and you just have to pick it up and answer it to find out who's on the other end. This was seen analagous to door to door solicitors. Would you invite a total stranger into your house? Of course not. But with a telephone, there's no choice. Till caller ID.

I guess today's wrath is especially reserved to Telemarketers. With caller ID, any "Unavailable" call that gets through, if I decide to answer, is usually something very similar to "What do _you_ want?"

The only thing worse is when someone calls me and asks "Who is this?" I mean, come on. Doesn't anyone have any fricking manners anymore?

[jack@ss]

The only thing worse is when someone calls me and asks "Who is this?" I mean, come on. Doesn't anyone have any fricking manners anymore?

God, I hate that! I usually respond with 'Who are you?' If they give me any flack, I'll remind them that they called me, I didn't call them.
I don't know why, but I answer my cel phone with my first name. I have always answered the home phone with the usual 'hello'.

[jovan]

Originally posted by Jomo Mojo
Moshi moshi

Where'd that Japanese phone-answering phrase come from?

A quick search at http://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/ (in Japanese) reveals that moshi-moshi, is in fact the doubled form of moshi (duh). The Japanese are quite fond of such repeated words.

Moshi-moshi is the standard phone greating but can also be used to hail people. Moshi can only be used for that purpose. (Note: I never hear anyone use it in that context.)

"Moshi" is itself a vernacular variation of "moushi" which comes from the verb mousu, humble form of "to say." Thus when people say "moshi-moshi" they are saying something like "I say, I say!"

Though I doubt anyone thinks of it that way.

[Commander Fortune]

Originally posted by Padeye
Ahoy-hoy?

This is how I taught my 9 y/o to answer the phone when she was much smaller. I smile whenever she still does.

[rob_s]

It's quite common here in the UK for people to answer by giving their phone number. My parents, for example, always answer "722539" (nothing else, not even a "hello" as well) and you hear this all over the place.

It's always struck me as odd 'cos surely the person on the other end is aware of the number, as they have only just dialled it! Still seems popular though...

And anyone who answers their phone with "Whassup!" should be given a slap :D


rob s.

[Sunspace]

Matt_MCL said:
In Esperanto, similarly, "Ha lo" is used to answer the phone, but "Saluton" is the general greeting.I answer my phone with 'Saluton', if I recognise the caller-ID as that of an Esperanto-speaking person.

My answering-machine message is also in Esperanto. Scares off telemarketers better that way... :D

[chique]

My grandparents on both sides answer the phone with their last names...I've always wondered if that was a hold-out from the old party-line system.

My father says "Speak." People who bark the first time they call him get extra points in his eyes ;)

[whitetho]

Originally posted by LNO
I know I saw this in one of Cecil's books, but I can't find the article in the archives. Cecil's review of "hello" appears on page 37 of More of the Straight Dope. But it's not part of a column -- it's one of 60 quiz questions that have never been posted online. Think of these as "bonus tracks", available to only those of Unca Cecil's loyal followers who have done that extra -- but critically important -- step in fighting ignorance by buying all of the master's books.

[Eve]

More early telephone trivia: the first switchboard operators were men, but they proved inadequate, as their fingers were too big to work the intricate switchboards; and they tended to curse at callers when stressed out. So they were soon replaced by what were known as "hello girls." This was one of the better non-factory jobs available to women 100 years ago or so, when most "secretaries" were still men.

[Spectre of Pithecanthropus]

Long ago (sorry no cite) I read a book on the history of the phone system, and it pointed out that the transmission was of very poor quality in the early days, and you could barely hear the other person. Consequently it was natural that people would use a word like "Ahoy", since it implies that the speaker is calling out to someone who is far away. I think that must be how "Hello" came to be used as well. In More Of The Straight Dope, Cecil says that "Hello" had not been widely used before it came to replace "Ahoy" on the telephone, but I suspect it had been used regularly before then, not as a casual greeting, but as an attention-getter, much like Ahoy. This is illustrated by expressions such as "Hello up there!"

[xicanorex]

Originally posted by ThisYearsGirl
[QUOTE]Originally posted by Hail Ants
[B]I know in some Spanish speaking countries, they answer with "Alo," which is like Hello, but with a Spanish accent.

In Mexico, you use "Alo" only if you want to sound Spanish (from Spain), cosmopolitan, and upper middle class near your friends. Most Mexicans will use "Hola", "Bueno", or "Digame." The most commonly used is "hola".

XicanoreX

[mhendo]

The following is from the online subscriber version of the complete Oxford English Dictionary (i can't give a link, as you have to enter through the site and ISP of a subscribing university or individual).Hello, int. andn.:

b. Used as an answer to a telephone call.

1892 KIPLING Lett. of Travel (1920) 94 A..millionaire..clawing wildly at the telephone... ‘Hello!.. Yes. Who's there?’ 1922 S. LEWIS Babbitt iv. 41 On the telephone they said only: ‘..Oh, Hello, 343?’ 1973 J. WAINWRIGHT Pride of Pigs 169 She..picked up the receiver, waited for the S.T.D. pips to stop, said ‘Hello?’ and..recognised her brother's voice.

The earliest use given in this context is, as you can see, 1892. The earliest use given for "hello" in any context is 1883.

However, the OED also list "hello" as a variant of "hallo", and refers the reader to the latter entry, which says:hallo, halloa, int. and n.:

[A later form of HOLLO (hollow, holloa), q.v. Cf. Ger. hallo, halloh, also OHG. halâ, holâ, emphatic imper. of halôn, holôn to fetch, used esp. in hailing a ferryman. Also written hullo(a, hillo(a, hello, from obscurity of the first syllable.]

A shout or exclamation to call attention, or expressing some degree of surprise (e.g. on meeting some one unexpectedly). Cf. HALLOO. Freq. used as a greeting, etc., on a telephone. Also, repeated, as a locution indicating surprise. Cf. HELLO int. b, HULLO int.

A. as int.

1840 DICKENS Barn. Rudge x, ‘Halloa there! Hugh!’ roared John. 1864 H. SPENCER Illustr. Univ. Progr. 217 Any phrase with which one may be heard to accost the otheras ‘Hallo, are you here?’ 1942 A. CHRISTIE Body in Library ii. 24 Hallo, 'allo, 'allo, what's this? 1972 Police Rev. 10 Nov. 1473/2 You could have a walking, talking plastic Policeman..saying ‘Allo, allo, allo.’

B. as n.

a1898 Mod. I gave a loud halloa. Loud halloas were now heard in all directions. 1932 N. & Q. 6 Aug. 105/2 The telephonic ‘hallo’.

[anenquiringmind]

I called a friend one day many years ago from a phone booth expecting to hear the usual "Hello!" when he answered the phone.
This time when he answered he said, "Telephone!" and I nearly died from laughing so hard, I mean to tell you I was on the floor of that phone booth, crying and dying, I couldnt even answer him back. I dont know why it hit me like that, but it was truly one of the great laughing fits of all time.
To this day I still answer the phone by saying,
"Telephone!"
I love it!!!!!

[samclem]

To emphasize what EVE said, I submit from Mark Twain, "The humblest hello-girl along ten thousand miles of wire could teach gentleness, patience, modesty, manners, to the highest duchess in Arthur's land. 1889, Connecticut Yankee

Actually, I stole this from Lighter.

[samclem]

mhendo what is the exact sentence in the 1883 OED quote for Hello?

[mhendo]

To samclem:

The full OED citation follows (and you'll see your Mark Twain reference in the list).


An exclamation to call attention; also expressing some degree of surprise, as on meeting any one unexpectedly.

A. as int. a. Also as a greeting.

1883 Breadwinners 241 Hello, Andy! you asleep. 1888 BLACK Adv. House-boat xxiii, Hellohere's more about evolution. 1967 Listener 5 Oct. 427/2 ‘Hello,’ I thought, ‘Now she's overdoing it.’ 1971 Farmer & Stockbreeder 23 Feb. 3/3 Next week..we shall say hello again to most of you, and to 100,000 new readers as well.



b. Used as an answer to a telephone call.

1892 KIPLING Lett. of Travel (1920) 94 A..millionaire..clawing wildly at the telephone... ‘Hello!.. Yes. Who's there?’ 1922 S. LEWIS Babbitt iv. 41 On the telephone they said only: ‘..Oh, Hello, 343?’ 1973 J. WAINWRIGHT Pride of Pigs 169 She..picked up the receiver, waited for the S.T.D. pips to stop, said ‘Hello?’ and..recognised her brother's voice.



B. as n.

1897 M. KINGSLEY W. Africa 45 The amount of ‘Hellos’ ‘Are you theres?’ and ‘Speak louder, pleases’..that must at such times be poured out and wasted..before the break is realised.



Comb. 1889 ‘MARK TWAIN’ [i]Connecticut Yankee 176 The humblest..hello-girl..could teach the highest duchess. 1895 Critic 6 Apr. 263/2 The awful nuisance of the central [telephone] office, and..what is familiarly known as the ‘hello-girl’. 1928 Daily Chron. 4 Feb. (headline) Brave Hello Girls. 1971 New Scientist 17 June p. iv, That was the day we said Goodbye to the Hello girls.



Hence hello v., to shout hello!

1895 Critic 6 Apr. 263/2 There will be no helloing girl to ask you every minute, ‘Have you finished?’ while you are straining your ears to hear what the person you are talking to is saying.

[samclem]

mhendo many thanks.

So, it seems that Mark Twain possibly has the first printed usage of "hello" as a telephone greeting in 1889. Unless my poor tired brain missed something. If I did miss it, would someone post a cite by Edison or Grey where they said "hello."

[Johanna]

The old pop song "Hello Ma Baby" (1899) invokes the early telephone phrase "Hello Central". Also, Mark Twain's A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court opens one chapter cryptically for the modern reader where the Yankee's wife exclaims "Hello-Central!" and you gradually find out she's referring to their daughter. The kid was given that name after the Yankee said "Hello-Central" in his sleep. His medieval wife, not knowing what it meant, assumed it was the name of his former lover, so she named their daughter "Hello-Central" to please him.

This has always struck me as one of the very weirdest passages in all of Twain's writing, and you know he wrote some very weird stuff. The whole thing is so preposterous I wonder who he thought he was putting on. (Well, I suppose the entire novel of ACYiKAC was an exercise in how preposterous a piece of fiction could get. Give me Pudd'nhead Wilson any day.)

I gather that when the telephone first appeared, you couldn't dial direct. When you picked up the speaking-device, or whatever they called it, you didn't get a dial tone but you reached the operator and asked her to connect you to the party you wanted to reach. When telephones were first installed in the 1880s, the way to get the operator's attention was apparently "Hello Central." I don't know when this phrase died out.

[Wumpus]

Well, bluesmen were still singing "Hello Central" in the 1930s....