Source: "The Swedish Toolkit"
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
When I came back to Sweden
I entered a grocery store and said "hej!"
Swedes looked at me
In Silence
They wondered why I was saying hi
In Sweden greetings mean something different
You greet when you have something to talk about
When you have something purposeful to say
If you have a reason
Greetings are more pragmatic
Swedes are not rude
They simply have codes that differs from other cultures
It is often about not disturbing others
And respecting each other’s privacy
“Politeness in Sweden is much more about not disturbing others rather than following strict social rules.”
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Source: "The Swedish Toolkit"
By Julien S. Bourrelle
Book a lecture on www.julien.tips
Watch him on TED
