Source: "The Social Guidebook to Norway"
I lived two years in Spain
In Spain when you enter a shop you say “¡Hola!”
The cashier replies “¡Hola!”
And all the other people in the shop reply “¡Hola!”
It looks a little bit like this
I Norway when you enter a shop a greet
Both employees and customers may wonder what you are after
Why is he saying "hei"?
In Norway greetings mean something different
You greet when you have a reason to
When you have something to talk about
When you have something purposeful to say
Greetings are more pragmatic
Norwegians are not rude
They simply have codes that differs from other cultures
Politennes is often about not disturbing others
And respecting each other’s privacy
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Read more about our amazing Norwegian friends in Our Social Guidebooks to Norway
By Julien S. Bourrelle
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