# Any Spaniards still say Salud! instead of Adios? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 29, 2009, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614 "2009-01-29T21:23:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![No\_Wikipedia\_Cites](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@No\_Wikipedia\_Cites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/No_Wikipedia_Cites)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2009, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/1 "2009-01-29T21:23:53Z")
Back in the Spanish Civil War (36-39), the republican side being anti-clerical, and probably anti-religious in general, said good-bye with “Salud!” instead of the traditional ‘Adios’, to avoid having to mention the Dios part. Question: Does this usage survive? Is there any replacement, for political or other reasons, for ‘Adios’, is maybe, (communist controlled) Cuba? And would the use of “Salud” make sense as a goodbye in modern spanish? (I.e. if i use it?) ---
**Author:** ![No\_Wikipedia\_Cites](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@No\_Wikipedia\_Cites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/No_Wikipedia_Cites)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2009, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/2 "2009-02-02T14:16:23Z")
Nobody? ---
**Author:** ![stucky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@stucky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stucky)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 8:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/3 "2009-02-03T08:04:03Z")
When I was in Barcelona in the 1960’s I don’t remember anyone saying salud (which was an archaic greeting. Don’t know about it being a way to say goodbye, but you probably know more than me.) ---
**Author:** ![Svejk\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@Svejk\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Svejk_1)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 8:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/4 "2009-02-03T08:40:48Z")
I haven’t heard salud but I’ve heard lots of people saying ‘luego’ - in fact, whenever I greet with ‘adios’ I seem to get a ‘luego’ in response and vice versa. But maybe that’s just me, though. ETA: maybe I should add that I’m not Spanish and that my Spanish is none too good but still somehow passable and that I have done some travelling around Spain over the last couple of years, which what I’m basing my observations on. ---
**Author:** ![Sapo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@Sapo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sapo)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/5 "2009-02-03T16:47:48Z")
Never heard of “Salud” for “adios”. “Saludos” is often used both at hello (meaning “greetings”) or at goodbye (meaning “send my regards to yours”). “luego” is also strange. I presume it could be short for “Hasta luego” (“until later”), but I have never heard it. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/6 "2009-02-03T18:00:13Z")
Salud is used for Bless You, but I’ve never heard anyone use it for Goodbye. Edit: Err, to be clear, I mean people say it when you sneeze. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/7 "2009-02-03T18:32:51Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > Salud is used for Bless You, but I’ve never heard anyone use it for Goodbye. > > Edit: Err, to be clear, I mean people say it when you sneeze. This is what I was going to say. I speak a fair amount of Espanol and generally always used “hasta luego” or just “luego” for goodbye. Vaya Con Dios makes me think of Julio Iglesias. ---
**Author:** ![Sapo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@Sapo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sapo)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2009, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/8 "2009-02-03T19:47:07Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > Salud is used for Bless You, but I’ve never heard anyone use it for Goodbye. > > Edit: Err, to be clear, I mean people say it when you sneeze. Sometimes people sneeze on their way out. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [February 7, 2009, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/9 "2009-02-07T21:10:01Z")
> [@sassyfras](#): > > Is there any replacement, for political or other reasons, for ‘Adios’, is maybe, (communist controlled) Cuba? In South America (and Cuba) it’s “chao,” and not for any anti-religious or political reasons. I’m not sure, but I think it’s just a the influence of Italian via Argentina. ---
**Author:** ![Pyper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Pyper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pyper)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2009, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/10 "2009-02-08T01:25:08Z")
When I lived in Spain (2001-02), the preferred way to say goodbye was “hasta luego,” which translates to “until then.” A crusty old Spanish man explained to me that in Spain they do not say “adios” because it implies a permanent goodbye. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2009, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/11 "2009-02-08T03:37:19Z")
> [@Pyper](#): > > When I lived in Spain (2001-02), the preferred way to say goodbye was “hasta luego,” which translates to “until then.” A crusty old Spanish man explained to me that in Spain they do not say “adios” because it implies a permanent goodbye. Don’t we have a similar saying? “Don’t say goodbye, just say see you later.” Or something. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2009, 9:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/12 "2009-02-09T09:48:19Z")
The only time I’ve heard someone say “salud” is when someone sneezes. It may have been born as a way to avoid saying the more-usual “Jesús” (which is kind of funny, as it would put the atheists more in the field of “not saying the name of G-d” than the practicing Catholics), but it’s generally viewed as archaic. “Hasta luego,” “ta luego,” “ta lueguito,” “luego”, “lueguito” are all “see you later” (the ta is a shortening of “hasta,” but Spanish doesn’t bother with apostrophes) and indeed some people think it sounds less permanent than “adiós.” “Hasta mañana” (see you tomorrow) or “hasta la vista” (until next time we meet) also can be interpreted as “less permanent” than “adiós.” I use them quite interchangeably and didn’t meet someone who thought “adiós” sounded too permanent until I was already in my 20s; I only say something like “hasta mañana” if I am, indeed, meeting that person again the next day or “hasta el lunes” (until Monday) to my coworkers on Friday. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2009, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/13 "2009-02-09T11:11:05Z")
> [@Pyper](#): > > When I lived in Spain (2001-02), the preferred way to say goodbye was “hasta luego,” which translates to “until then.” A crusty old Spanish man explained to me that in Spain they do not say “adios” because it implies a permanent goodbye. Which means the gringo song “Spanish Eyes” got it backwards: _This is just adiós and not goodbye_ ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2009, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/14 "2009-02-09T15:41:08Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > The only time I’ve heard someone say “salud” is when someone sneezes. What do you say when toasting? (I don’t mean toasting bread, for the wisenheimers). ---
**Author:** ![Sapo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@Sapo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sapo)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2009, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/15 "2009-02-09T16:11:13Z")
“Salud” also, at least here in Latin America. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2009, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/16 "2009-02-09T16:30:31Z")
> [@Sapo](#): > > “Salud” also, at least here in Latin America. Yeah, but **Nava** ’s European, and she said she’s only ever heard _salud_ after a sneeze. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2009, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/17 "2009-02-09T17:12:39Z")
> [@Pyper](#): > > “hasta luego,” which translates to “until then.” “Until later”, not “until then”. “Luego” originally means “immediately following” but has also come to mean “later” (Spaniards being procrastinators). “Lueguito” in Mexico. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2009, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/18 "2009-02-09T22:04:01Z")
> [@sailor](#): > > “Lueguito” in Mexico. I’ve never that word used in Mexico. It sounds kind of gay. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2009, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/19 "2009-02-09T22:22:35Z")
> [@Balthisar](#): > > I’ve never that word used in Mexico. It sounds kind of gay. Results 1 - 30 of about 1,620,000 for “hasta lueguito”. > [@](#): > > [http://bab.la/diccionario/ingles-espanol/hasta+lueguito.html](http://bab.la/diccionario/ingles-espanol/hasta+lueguito.html) > see you later - hasta lueguito [Hasta lueguito](http://sinajatienequienleescriba.com/2008/08/14/hasta-lueguito/) An episode of the Simpsons is titled "Los Simpson: Hasta lueguito, cerebrito " I guess Mexicans sound kind of gay. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2009, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614/20 "2009-02-10T12:18:17Z")
> [@sailor](#): > > I guess Mexicans sound kind of gay. LOL. Just the maricones, I guess. I wasn’t disputing its use; I also wasn’t slandering gay people by using “gay” as a substitute for “stupid.” Rather, I was literally suggesting that it sounds “gay.” Effeminate man-talk. On the high side, maybe something a child or non-adult woman would utter. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-spaniards-still-say-salud-instead-of-adios/483614.md?page=2)