# Egyptian Phone Greeting? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 2, 2007, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/egyptian-phone-greeting/386455 "2007-01-02T20:07:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Tristan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tristan/32/18058_2.png) [@Tristan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tristan)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2007, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/egyptian-phone-greeting/386455/1 "2007-01-02T20:07:19Z")
I have an internet friend that calls me on occasion to co-ordinate moves in an online game. He’s from Egypt, living in Egypt. What could I say to surprise him when I pick up? I usually just say “Hello?”, but I added his # to my phone, so now when he calls I can see it’s Shamel. Thanks all! ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2007, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/egyptian-phone-greeting/386455/2 "2007-01-02T20:38:34Z")
Ay oh whey oh, ay oh whey oh, Talk like an Egyptian … Apparently “Em Hotep” is “hello” in Egyptian. I don’t know if they answer phones that way or not, and I don’t know what the nuances of pronunciation are for that. ---
**Author:** ![Tristan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tristan/32/18058_2.png) [@Tristan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tristan)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2007, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/egyptian-phone-greeting/386455/3 "2007-01-02T21:38:50Z")
[QUOTE=yabob] Ay oh whey oh, ay oh whey oh, Talk like an Egyptian … Apparently “Em Hotep” is “hello” in Egyptian. I don’t know if they answer phones that way or not, and I don’t know what the nuances of pronunciation are for that. [/QUOTE] For some odd reason, I’m having a hard time swallowing this one… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Will\_Repair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a698b9/32.png) [@Will\_Repair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Will_Repair)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2007, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/egyptian-phone-greeting/386455/4 "2007-01-02T22:23:32Z")
Salam Alaikum ---
**Author:** ![Ignatz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/3be4f8/32.png) [@Ignatz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ignatz)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2007, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/egyptian-phone-greeting/386455/5 "2007-01-02T23:54:34Z")
Pyramid Repair Service, Sphinxter here. ---
**Author:** ![eenerms](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/cdc98d/32.png) [@eenerms](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eenerms)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2007, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/egyptian-phone-greeting/386455/6 "2007-01-03T04:40:58Z")
I’ve lived in Saudi now in Qatar. Most Arabic speaking people answer their phones 'Allo, or Mar ha bah or A Slama laikum. ( I tried to assist in pronoucation of the last two by the separation of syllables :)) ---
**Author:** ![Bibliovore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7ba0ec/32.png) [@Bibliovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bibliovore)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2007, 11:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/egyptian-phone-greeting/386455/7 "2007-01-03T11:38:54Z")
\*\*eenerms \*\* has it right. \*"'Allo?" \* is the most common phone greeting, closely follwed by _“Ah-leyn?”_. \*Mar-ha-bah \* is used more often in Syria nd Lebanon than in Egypt. If you really want to surprise him, say “_Meen Ma’ah-Yah_?”, which means “Who’s with me”, or “Who’s There?” ---
**Author:** ![Chez\_Guevara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/aeb1de/32.png) [@Chez\_Guevara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chez_Guevara)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2007, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/egyptian-phone-greeting/386455/8 "2007-01-03T11:57:42Z")
[QUOTE=Tristan] What could I say to surprise him when I pick up? [/quote] Tell him you’re pregnant and he’s the father. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2007, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/egyptian-phone-greeting/386455/9 "2007-01-03T14:58:58Z")
[QUOTE=yabob] Apparently “Em Hotep” is “hello” in Egyptian. [/QUOTE] Huh? 😕 That sounds vaguely similar to ancient Egyptian, but today Egyptians speak the Egyptian dialect of Arabic. As others have said, they generally say _Allo_, which is a throwback to the influence of the French occupation. I hear \*aHlan \* as an in-person greeting but I don’t know if it’s used for the phone.