this post was submitted on 19 Aug 2024
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[–] [email protected] 73 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Apparently “ahoy” was a common greeting before the telephone was invented, to the point that Alexander Graham Bell suggested it for use when answering the phone.

[–] ChicoSuave 46 points 3 months ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 40 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I think that gag was referencing Graham Bell's suggestion.

[–] ChicoSuave 11 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Graham Bell was referencing the age old tradition of greeting someone with "ahoy".

[–] [email protected] 10 points 3 months ago

I'm not really convinced that "ahoy" was that common beforehand. AFAIK, Graham Bell wanted a different greeting than what was commonly used as to differentiate greeting on the phone with greeting IRL.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Confirmation this is the worst timeline.

Ahoy is the superior greeting. I support its return to standard use.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 3 months ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 3 points 2 months ago

"Well met, traveller!"

[–] trashgirlfriend 7 points 3 months ago

Move to Slovakia

[–] CitizenKong 31 points 3 months ago (2 children)

While it wasn't a general greeting, "halloo" was already used as a verb meaning "to call for a hunting" in the 14th century.

[–] pyre 13 points 3 months ago (1 children)

also as an exclamation of surprise, like "halloo, what's this?"

"hello" is still occasionally used in this sense today.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 months ago (1 children)
[–] pyre 4 points 3 months ago (1 children)

idk if you're joking but not German; it was indeed halloo or holloo in English before hello became standard

[–] [email protected] 11 points 3 months ago (2 children)

“halloo, what’s this?”

"haaaallooooo" is used a lot by Germans as a slow exclamation to mean "hey idiot, what are you doing?"

[–] Gradually_Adjusting 3 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Try actually saying "hey idiot, what are you doing?" some time. It's very good.

[–] NormalPerson 3 points 3 months ago

That's my morning mantra in front of the bathroom mirror

[–] Zoomboingding 3 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

It's used this way in American English sometimes, as in a teen issuing a counterpoint "HellOOOOoooo"

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 months ago

Think McFly!!

[–] SuperEars 4 points 3 months ago

Like the fox hunters in Mary Poppins?! D:

[–] [email protected] 19 points 3 months ago (1 children)

There are countries in the world, where you enter a room in the morning full of dear and beloved friends and colleagues, and you would neither greet them nor make eye contact until they wanted something from you.

I don't know whether this would be my heaven or my hell, but as a brit, useless smalltalk is practically baked into my bones.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I'll stick with the hellos. IMO meatspace human interaction feels like a privilege now.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago

Especially today where everyone wants to be alone because of overstimulation (but they might also feel lonely at the same time)

[–] [email protected] 10 points 3 months ago

Someone on social media literally cannot stop thinking about this.

[–] spongeborgcubepants 4 points 3 months ago
[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 months ago