Where do people say howdy? (credit, military, moving)

[eddie gein]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjX1LpSow_g

[Vegabern]

Originally Posted by pnwguy2

Montana, Wyoming, Idaho, some parts of Washington, Oregon, Nevada, and California.

Not once in my ten years in Montana.

[Marie Joseph]

I've only heard it a couple of times that I recall.

We had a field sales guy in the Western region who had his home base in Nevada (Pahrump?) and covered pretty much the entire West from Colorado to the coast. He was an older guy in his late 50's and he always said 'Howdy' whether it was over the phone or when he would come to the main office in Detroit.

I worked for an HR director once who was initially from Wyoming and she used 'Howdy' on a fairly often basis when greeting people in person.

Other than that, the only time I have ever seen it is in the movies.

[srfoskey]

Thanks for the responses everyone! And yeah I think in most places hey or hello is the more common greeting.

Does anyone say howdy in Arizona?

[Spade]

Originally Posted by stan4

Lived in 3 different Texas cities for the last 30 years.
Never heard it unless someone was being facetious.

Grew up in central Texas and nobody ever said it in a regular conversation. If I did hear it, people were just playing around. But it’s not a word that I heard on the regular.

[luv4horses]

Of course you all know where “howdy” comes from. There is a polite English greeting “How do you do?” meaning how are you or in what simple circumstances do you find yourself. How d(o) y(ou)...

There was once a popular children’s television show with a hand puppet named Howdy Doody. All very cute and charming.

[Pincho-toot]

Originally Posted by jennifat

I've never heard a person say "howdy" that wasn't in a John Wayne Western.

I have heard one of my cousins from Texas say, "how is alls y'alls day?", which is of equal cringe magnitude for me.

For me "you guyses" is a cringe moment. "Is that you guyses bag?" sounds so clunky as opposed to asking "Is that y'alls bag?"

[Pincho-toot]

I hear it here in Minnesota. I'm surprised people are saying they don't hear it much. Yea, it's tongue in cheek, but I feel most language kind of is. When you're chit chatting with strangers, isn't 99% of it kinda tongue in cheek? Customers say howdy to me, I say howdy to them. It's a quick friendly way to say "hi." Would you all prefer "Yo, whattup?"

[Crazybreakfast]

Hey y'all, AZ nativish here! I grew up saying howdy, as did most of my family. I still use it when introducing myself to someone new, but I've tried to stop... My little brother, who grew up in Tennessee, never uses the word. I've never heard it outside of AZ, NM, and occasionally heard it in Texas and Oklahoma. Haven't heard it in the south at all. I don't really hear it in Phoenix anymore though so I think it could be a dying trend. I know it is an aggie thing as well- my father went to A&M and his family is from Waco and they do use it but they are an older generation as well.

[eddie gein]

Originally Posted by Spade

Grew up in central Texas and nobody ever said it in a regular conversation. If I did hear it, people were just playing around. But it’s not a word that I heard on the regular.

Big Tex (the stature at the state fair of Texas) says "howdy folks"..........

I think he also says "up yonder".............