“Hello” became a common greeting after the invention of the telephone in 1877. Alexander Graham Bell wanted “ahoy” to be the standard greeting. The word was first published in 1827 and was used to grab attention. In Russia, people wait for the caller to speak first, while Germans state their last name when answering.
The word “hello” didn’t become a common greeting in the English language until after the invention of the telephone in 1877, when American inventor Thomas Edison is thought to have suggested the word as a greeting when he picked up the phone. The current inventor of the telephone, Alexander Graham Bell, reportedly wanted “ahoy” to be the standard greeting when answering the phone. The exact origins of the word “hello” are not known, but it is believed to have first appeared in a work published in 1827. Before the invention of the telephone, the word “hello” was typically used to grab attention of a person rather than as a greeting.
More information on telephone greetings:
In Russia, people often don’t answer the phone with a greeting and instead wait silently for the caller to say something first.
The first telephone directory was published by the District Telephone Company of New Haven, Connecticut in 1878 and included instructions for answering the telephone with the greeting “hello”.
Germans typically greet callers on the phone by simply stating their last name.
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