How to Learn Arabic Language

كيف تحيي الآخرين وتسلم عليهم : التحية باللغة العربية
This is one of the very basic questions and Arabic lessons you should learn: How do you say hello in Arabic? It is easy and have any variations depending on the dialect and country but people will understand different forms.


Muslims usually use "Salam Alykum" سلام عليكم which is "peace be upon you" and the answer is وعليكم السلام "waalykom as-salam".


Many Arabs also use "Marhaba" which literally means welcome but used as hello for greetings. "Ahlan wa sahlan" أهلا وسهلا means welcome, use it when you are welcoming someone or having guests. "Hala" هلا is an easier one for welcome.

In Egypt people use "Salam Alaykom" when they meet someone or "ahlan, ezzayak" أهلا ، إزيك which means hello, how are you?

حاول معرفة طرق التحية الشائعة في البلد الذي أنت ذاهب إليه فلكل بلد من البلاد العربية عادات وتقاليد تميزه عن غيره إلا أن التحية بالأعلى يمكن استخدامها في كل البلاد العربية والإسلامية

A hint: Each country will have a few very common greetings that most of the people use, try to observe how people respond to your greeting, what response do they choose? Try to use the common one. Also, observe how people greet each other when they meet and notice the gestures, the difference between meeting a stranger and meeting friends.

Handshaking, hugging and kissing on the cheek is normal amongs males in the Arab world, it has nothing to do with homosexuality.

Other greetings:
"Sabah El-Khair" صباح الخير means good morning.
"Masaa El-Khair" مساء الخير means good evening.
We don't have a greeting for the afternoon in Arabic language.
"Tesbah ala khair" تصبح على خير means good night.
"Maa assalama" مع السلامة means goodbye or just "salam" سلام , peace!

Many Arabs also use the English greeting (hi, hello, etc), so, you can use them if you forget the Arabic ones. Bonjour is used in Lebanon, Tunisia and Algeria.

So, to summarize, how do you say hello in Arabic? Easy, it is "assalamu alaikom" or "ahlan, ahlan".

Related:
Thank you in Arabic.