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I was just talking about this to a friend in the south. During family get-togethers, how do you greet one another? Do you only hug those in your immediate family, or kiss those just in your immediate family?
I don't know if this is a cultural thing or not, but my family is from NYC and Long Island, and my family and most friends are mostly Italian. Even if we don't really know the others at a get-together, we'll give them a one handed hug and a kiss on the cheek. Even if we never saw them before. The guys tend to give each other a hug and pat one another on the back. I don't know if this is a NY thing or Italian thing.
So how do you greet others during family functions/get-togethers/bbq's?
I was just talking about this to a friend in the south. During family get-togethers, how do you greet one another? Do you only hug those in your immediate family, or kiss those just in your immediate family?
I don't know if this is a cultural thing or not, but my family is from NYC and Long Island, and my family and most friends are mostly Italian. Even if we don't really know the others at a get-together, we'll give them a one handed hug and a kiss on the cheek. Even if we never saw them before. The guys tend to give each other a hug and pat one another on the back. I don't know if this is a NY thing or Italian thing.
So how do you greet others during family functions/get-togethers/bbq's?
I do the same thing. One of my College professors that he was Italian told me that the only people that do this are the Italians and Hispanics. What do you think? Do you think this is true?
Hmm I don't think hugging or kissing people you don't know well is common here. For one some people really don't care for that so you don't want to make them uncomfortable. Although with family get-together there might be an intimation of closeness even if you don't actually know your third cousin twice removed or what have you.
We have a large, per-capita, Italian community nearby so it might be different for them. I'm not really sure though and if it is I think it might partly be because relatively few of them are total strangers to each other. I know my Aunt was surprised to meet an Italian in the area she didn't know. (My Aunt is not Italian, but her first husband was.) I don't live in a real urban part of the nation so the "large Italian community" I mean is a few thousand at most. I believe they're fairly interconnected through marriage and business. (Not making a stereotype about Italians really, most groups are fairly interconnected as it's a small area)
Anyway the kissing and hugging thing I think is somewhat common in Mediterranean cultures, not just Italian or Spanish ones. I'm pretty sure Arabs kiss as a greeting. The French do to, although their culture isn't quite as Mediterranean in origin. I seem to recall East Asian cultures have the least physical interaction between non-intimates with Japanese rarely touching each other in conversation. (By "touch" I just mean any kind of touch. Handshake, pat on the head, anything. Japanese I think are about the least likely to do any of that. The bow requires no physical contact whatsoever)
I was just talking about this to a friend in the south. During family get-togethers, how do you greet one another? Do you only hug those in your immediate family, or kiss those just in your immediate family?
I don't know if this is a cultural thing or not, but my family is from NYC and Long Island, and my family and most friends are mostly Italian. Even if we don't really know the others at a get-together, we'll give them a one handed hug and a kiss on the cheek. Even if we never saw them before. The guys tend to give each other a hug and pat one another on the back. I don't know if this is a NY thing or Italian thing.
So how do you greet others during family functions/get-togethers/bbq's?
Well, Italian and from Long Island, originally - hug and kiss.
I do the same thing. One of my College professors that he was Italian told me that the only people that do this are the Italians and Hispanics. What do you think? Do you think this is true?
I would have transferred out of that class immediately.
For my family it's shake hands with the men and give hugs to the women that's on my stepdad's side which is larger (he has 13 siblings). On my mom's side (very small she has one sister 30 years her senior and I was raised an only child) it's usually hiya no hand shakes or hugs just hi, maybe a hug from my aunt. Both sides are from the South.
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