SALVE, Italian’s Superhero Greeting

With all the different ways to say hello in Italian, sometimes it’s hard to think on your feet and feel confident choosing the right one. That’s where salve comes to the rescue! 

Salve in Italian is a great go-to salutation when you’re not sure whether to use a formal or informal greeting! Salve is easy to pronounce, versatile and appropriate in many different settings. 

Read on to learn what salve means in Italian, as well how to pronounce it. You’ll find an explanation of how and when to use salve: how to judge formal and informal scenarios, when in the day you can use salve, and some examples of situations where salve is a handy greeting. Keep reading for a sample dialogue, how to respond when someone greets you with salve, and to find out the difference between ciao and salve. 

WHAT DOES SALVE MEAN IN ITALIAN?

Salve means hello in Italian. 

WHAT IS THE ORIGIN OF SALVE? 

Salve in Italian comes from the Latin salve, which was also a greeting: hail! It derives from the Latin verb salvēre, which means to be well, or to be in good health. 

HOW DO YOU PRONOUNCE SALVE IN ITALIAN?

The pronunciation of Salve is: SAHL-vay

Listen to how to pronounce Salve here: 

WHEN TO SAY SALVE IN ITALIAN

SALVE: INFORMAL OR FORMAL?

As you probably know, when addressing someone in Italian, you must take into account whether your relationship is informal (like a family member or friend), or formal (like someone older than you, a person with higher social standing, or anyone you’d like to treat with formal respect). 

There is context to consider as well. There are informal settings, like the discoteca. And there are formal settings, like a work conference.

Often it’s very obvious how formal the situation is. Meeting up for a spritz with your friends at the bar, things are casual and informal. Meeting with the Prime Minister, on the other hand, is a formal affair.

However, there are times when you walk into a new situation and aren’t sure how formal the setting is. This is a great time to use salve to say hello! 

There are also situations where you’ll need to say hello to a group of people with many different people in it- who have a range of formal and informal relationships to you. This calls for salve!

What about those awkward situations when you’re just not sure what the most appropriate greeting is? Have no fear, salve is here!

Salve also works in those in-between situations when you don’t want to be too casual with someone you don’t know too well, but also don’t want to sound too stuffy and formal.

SALVE: WHAT TIME OF DAY?

You can say salve at any time of day to say hello. It is not specific to a certain time of the day, unlike buongiorno (good morning/good day) or buonasera (good afternoon/good evening).

What about at 2pm, that weird time of day when you’re not sure whether to use buongiorno or buonasera? It’s salve to the rescue!

SITUATIONS FOR USING SALVE IN ITALIAN

Here are just a few scenarios and settings where you’d likely use the greeting salve in Italian:

• When entering a classroom.
  
  Even though I’d already taken two years of Italian at college, the first time I ever heard salve was when I was studying abroad in Milan my junior year. There was a Milanese student named Pietro who was almost always late to our music theory class- and every time, he said salve to greet us all (the class and teacher).

• When crossing paths with other walkers/hikers/joggers/bikers on a trail 

• When entering a store where there are people you know and don’t know, or there’s a mix of ages (Don’t forget that in Italy it’s good manners to say hello when you enter a store or business, and to say goodbye when you exit!).

• On your first day at a new job, before you get to know the work culture there.

A SAMPLE CONVERSATION WITH SALVE IN ITALIAN

A (Entering the bakery, where there are a few customers of varying ages): Salve. Hello.

B: Salve Signore, la posso aiutare? Hello Sir, may I help you?

A: Sì, cerco i cantuccini. Yes, I’m looking for the biscotti.

B: Certo, sono accanto alla porta. Certainly, they are next to the door.

A: Eccoli! Grazie. There they are! Thank you.

SALVE: HOW TO RESPOND?

It’s usually a good idea to follow the other person’s lead if you’re not sure how to respond in a conversation. If someone greets you with salve, an appropriate and polite response is probably salve in return! You can also reply with buongiorno or buonasera, depending on the time of day.

IS SALVE TOO FORMAL FOR CERTAIN SITUATIONS?

While salve is not strictly a formal greeting, it is true that it can sound stuffy if you’re saying hi to your buddies. If you’re greeting a bunch of school friends, your spouse, your kids, your mom, or your dad, ciao is a much more natural way to say hello!

CAN YOU USE SALVE TO SAY GOODBYE?

Salve cannot be used to say goodbye. If you use salve to say hello to someone, arrivederci is a good way to say goodbye to them. If you’ve become more familiar, and gotten to know each other better during the course of your conversation, it may also be appropriate to use ciao to say goodbye. 

IS SALVE USED ONLY IN CERTAIN PARTS OF ITALY?

Salve is an Italian word, and is in the Italian dictionary. However, as we know Italy is very diverse! Therefore, as with many words and customs, depending on where you are in Italy it may be more or less common. 

WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CIAO AND SALVE?

Both ciao and salve mean hello. But ciao is strictly an informal greeting, similar to hi in English. 

Use ciao with your friends and family, and in casual settings. But it’s polite to use a more formal greeting when you want to greet your teacher, an elder, or someone you’ve just been introduced to. As long as it’s not an extremely formal situation, here’s where salve comes in.

Instead of using buongiorno or buonasera, which are time specific, you can say salve. Just remember that while ciao can also be used to say goodbye, salve cannot. 

SALVE REGINA

You may recognize the word salve from the Catholic prayer and hymn Salve Regina, known in English as Hail Holy Queen, or Hail Queen. The Latin text, and translations in numerous languages, have been set to music by composers since the Middle Ages.

Here is the text in Latin, and a translation in English:

Salve, Regina, Mater misericordiæ, vita, dulcedo, et spes nostra, salve. Ad te clamamus exsules filii Hevæ, Ad te suspiramus, gementes et flentes in hac lacrimarum valle. Eia, ergo, advocata nostra, illos tuos misericordes oculos ad nos converte; Et Jesum, benedictum fructum ventris tui, nobis post hoc exsilium ostende. O clemens, O pia, O dulcis Virgo Maria.

Hail Queen, Mother of Mercy, Hail our life, our sweetness and our hope. To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve; To thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears. Turn then, most gracious advocate, Thine eyes of mercy toward us; And after this our exile, Show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.

A QUICK GUIDE TO ITALIAN GREETINGS

	MEANING	HOW FORMAL?	TIME OF DAY
CIAO	Hi, hello	Informal	Anytime
SALVE	Hello	Informal and formal	Anytime
BUONGIORNO	Good morning, Good day	Formal, but can also be used informally	Up until about 2 or 3 pm
BUONDÌ	Good morning, Good day	Formal, but can also be used informally	Up until about 2 or 3 pm
BUONASERA	Good afternoon, Good evening	Formal, but can also be used informally	Anytime after lunch
BUON POMERIGGIO	Good afternoon	Formal, but can also be used informally	After lunch until about 4pm

Interested in learning more about Italian greetings? Check out How to Say Hello in Italian. And for farewells, read How to Say Goodbye in Italian!

Need to know what time it is in Italy? Check out Time In Italy – Current Time, Time Zone & More

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