Learning a foreign language
Hello in Dutch
How do you say hello in Dutch or Flemish?
Saying hello in Flemish or Dutch
Bonjour is Hallo in Dutch.
Being able to say hello in Dutch is an essential part of learning Dutch. This formula is used to start a conversation with someone.
- “Hallo” is the Dutch way of saying hello and greeting someone. This allows you to initiate a conversation with someone in Belgium and the Netherlands.
- “Goedendag” is the most formal greeting that can be used throughout the day without any variation.
- “Hallo” is the most common form, but there are more or less formal ways of doing things, and variations depending on the time of day or region.
Discover also:
- Saying hello in Dutch throughout the day
- Say hello in Dutch in a less formal way
- Saying hello in Dutch in different regions
After that, the next step is to learn to say goodbye in Dutch (“tot ziens“) or take a Dutch language course.
Saying hello in Dutch according to the time of day
How do you say hello in Dutch in the morning, evening, noon, afternoon and night?
As in German and English, we can use different ways of greeting depending on the time of day:
- Morning to midday: goeiemorgen
- Lunchtime and afternoon: goedemiddag
- Early evening and evening: goedenavond
- At night: goedenacht
Unlike in French, goedenacht is not used to say good night to someone who has decided to go and have sweet dreams. It’s a way of greeting each other when we meet during the night.
Say hello in Dutch in a less formal way
How can I say hello in Dutch in a more familiar way?
To greet friends or family you can use “Hoi” or “Dag”.
You can even enrich it slightly to make it a “bonjour, comment ça va?” by using “Hoi, hoe is het?”
There are many variations on these more familiar salutes, depending on the region.
Saying hello in Dutch, depending on the region
How do you say hello in the different regions of the Netherlands and Flanders in Belgium?
- In Belgium, Flemish: “dag
- In the north, around Groningen and Twente: “moi” in the morning and “Goei’n dag” in the evening.
- In Brabant: “euuuj”.
- In Tilburg: “alo
- In Zeeland at Terneuzen and the south-west of the Low Countries: “huijjj”.
- In Maastricht: “Goojendaagor hoi
Saying hello in Dutch in a nutshell
- Good morning! = Hallo!
- Good morning! = Dag!
- Good morning (any time of day) = Goedendag
- Good morning (in the morning) = Goedemorgen
- Good morning (at noon) = Goedemiddag
- Good evening = Goedenavond
- Nice to meet you = Leuk je te ontmoeten
- Pleased to meet you = Aangenaam om u te ontmoeten
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