Hälsningar = GREETINGS
One can greet a person in a formal or informal or very informal way. In Swedish, there are formal, informal and very informal ways to say ‘hello’.
Greeting a person:
Hej! = Hello, or, Hi. (formal)
Hej hej! = Hello – with an emphasis (friendly)
Hallå = Hello
Hejsan! = Hello, or, Hi (informal)
Tjenare! = Hi (very informal, you may say to your bosom buddy)
Tjena! = Hey, hi, or howdy (very informal, you may say to someone you know very well)
Tja! = Hi (very informal, a truncated form of tjena and tjenare)
Hallå där! = Hey (greeting in a tone of conviviality, or cheerfulness – Hallå där!)
Hallå där, det är Ebbas första arbetsdag = Hey, it is Ebba’s frst working day. Hallå där is also the title of a popular Swedish song by Basshunter.
NOTE: Tjänare means servant, and also refers to hello – vardalig hälsningsfras: an everyday phrasal greeting. So, be aware of the pronunciation of ‘tjena’ or ‘tjenare’ and ‘tjänare’ and the verb – att tjäna – tjäna – tjänar ä tjänade – har/hade tjänat means SERVE, EARN, DESERVE
Goodbye to a person:
Hej då! = Bye bye or goodbye
Hej då! Vi hörs! = Goodbye. Speak to you or get in touch with you soon.
Hej då! Vi ses! = Bye bye, or, goodbye. See you later.
Hej då! Vi ses snart. = Bye. We see soon, or we will meet soon.
Ja, det gör vi! = Yes, we will (in response to, Vi ses or Vi hörs!)
Ha det så bra! = Take care. Or, have a good time.
Du med! = You too! ( A response to ‘ha det så bra’)
A conversation:
Hej, vad heter du?
Jag heter Reddy. Och du?
Hejsan! = HELLO
Jag heter Anders.
Other greetings and phrases:
Sköt om dig = TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF
Ha en bra dag = HAVE A GOOD DAY
God morgon = GOOD MORNING
God eftermiddagen = GOOD AFTERNOON
God kväll = GOOD EVENING
God natt = GOOD NIGHT
God dag. = GOOD DAY
Kära! = DEAR!
Ta hand om dig! TAKE CARE
Hälsa från mig! SAY HELLO OR GIVE REGARDS TO…
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A letter to the audience by Soraya Hashim, Debattchef, Metro newspaper (Göteborg):
Hej! Jag heter Soraya och är Metros debattchef.
Jag behöver din hjälp!
När vi publicerar debattartiklar om jamställdhet brukar…
…
Skriv ihop förslag på 3000 tecken inklusive mellanslag och maila till debatt@metro.se
Hej hej
Vi hörs!
Soraya Hashim
Note the greetings in the letter: Hej! Hej Hej. Vi hörs!
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A conversation in the class:
Vad heter du? WHAT IS YOUR NAME?
Jag heter Aiysel. I AM AIYSEL.
Jag heter Jacob. I AM JACOB.
Hur är det? HOW ARE THINGS?
Det är bra, tack. IT’S GOOD, THANKS.
Och hur är det med dig? HOW ARE THINGS WITH YOU?
Kommer du ihåg, Babak? DO YOU REMEMBER?
Ja visst. OF COURSE.
Hälsa, Babak! SAY HELLO TO BABAK, or, GIVE MY REGARDS TO BABAK.
Ja, det ska jag göra. YES, I WILL.
Bra, tack. GREAT, THANKS.
Varsågod!
Invariably, you will come across this word – varsågod – YOU’RE WELCOME!
Varsågod is an interjection: Varsågod means many things: HERE YOU ARE, YOU ARE WELCOME, varsågod is uttered when handing something to somebody and appreciated the gesture by uttering – varsågod.
Varsågod is a formed of three words: var + så + god (var = was, så = so, god = good)
Varsågod could also mean Goodbye, You are welcome! Here you are! There you are! An invitation to several people.
Behold, sometimes varsågod is uttered when offering something to someone, for example, something to eat – varsågoda!
You are about to enter into the office or a building, and you meet a stranger or an acquaintance or a colleague, you can let him or her go in first, you say: varsågod!
