Multilingual Observation | “Hello” and “Konnichiwa” — The Design of an Encounter

[Greeting Words 2]

Every day, we casually use "Konnichiwa" or "Hello."
Yet, woven into them are the sense of distance from the other person, the atmosphere of the setting, and the way a relationship begins.

They seem the same, yet they are slightly different — let's look at those differences as the design of an encounter.

Japanese: Konnichiwa

“Konnichiwa” is actually less of a greeting and more of a phrase inserted into the flow of time.

Originally, it was just the “first half” of a sentence, such as:
“Kon-nichi wa (ii tenki desu ne)” (Today is a nice day, isn't it)
“Kon-nichi wa (go-kigen ikaga desu ka)” (How are you doing today)
Because of this, “Konnichiwa” does not have the feeling of suddenly stepping into someone else's territory; rather, it carries an air of gently establishing a relationship within a space that is already shared.

It is closer to a phrase confirming that you are in the same time zone, rather than “starting” an encounter.

English: Hello

"Hello" is clearly a call. You cast your voice toward the other person, explicitly stating, “I am speaking to you.” Because of this, the contours of the encounter are distinct. The distance is closer than in Japanese, and the relationship is established all at once from zero.
It is also characteristic that it can be used like “Hello?” to check if someone is there, meaning the encounter begins with “existence verification.”

Chinese: 你好 (nǐ hǎo)

"Nǐ hǎo," translated literally, means “You are good.” It is structured to present the state of the other person as words the moment you meet. Therefore,
• A call
• An evaluation
• An entry point for a relationship
all happen simultaneously.
Unlike Japanese, which blends into the space with “Konnichiwa,” or English, which casts a voice with “Hello,” there is a sense of focusing on the person themselves to begin the relationship.

Arabic: السلام عليكم (al-salāmu ʿalaykum)

Literally translated, it means “Peace be upon you.” This is both a greeting and a way of presenting one's worldview. The moment you meet someone, you show the values you stand for first.
The relationship begins not just between individuals, but between values. The encounter is very profound and polite.

The design of an encounter differs significantly from language to language.

An encounter begins with just a single word. Yet, what that word depicts is the way of entering the world in each language: “Who are you approaching, and how far?”

At first glance, the Japanese “Konnichiwa” seems to gently blend into the space.
However, I have come to feel that this word somehow steps too far into the other person's world.
Thinking about it now, I believe it is because “Konnichiwa” is a word that assumes you are already in the same space before you have even measured the distance to the other person.

Since I started learning other languages, I have noticed that speaking to someone I am meeting for the first time feels much easier than it does in Japanese.
Perhaps the design of Japanese encounters, which assumes you are already in the same space when you meet, did not quite fit my own sensibilities.

What about your “Konnichiwa”?

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