Why do Filipinos don't greet each other?

[EthanJM 0]

I always meet people (mostly white) on the street or in an elevator etc who greet you (Good morning, How are you?) even if they don't personally know you. I also met a lot of Filipinos who doesn't even bother to smile.

Is this a culture thing, or is it because we are just afraid to be rejected? Are we scared to smile or greet for fear that it might not be a Filipino after all? Or are some Filipinos just snobs and think highly of their stature now that they live comfortably abroad? I am just wondering...

If the white people can say "Hi, how are you?", why can't we?

[Sc0tt28 26]

I always meet people (mostly white) on the street or in an elevator etc who greet you (Good morning, How are you?) even if they don't personally know you. I also met a lot of Filipinos who doesn't even bother to smile.

Is this a culture thing, or is it because we are just afraid to be rejected? Are we scared to smile or greet for fear that it might not be a Filipino after all? Or are some Filipinos just snobs and think highly of their stature now that they live comfortably abroad? I am just wondering...

If the white people can say "Hi, how are you?", why can't we?

Using the verb "to do" in the same sentence, while separated by only a single noun, may have something to do with it. Just kidding of course. My grammer twitch kicked in when I saw the title. "Why do Filipinos don't...?" AAACCCKKK!!!

[lbounds 16]

I think it must depend on the person. Almost every where we go the majority of the time when we see another Filipino they will start a conversation with us or we with them. There was only a few times when the Filipino person wasn't friendly but the majority was. The conversation always gets to what part are you from, where you live and how long have you been here etc.. stuff like that.

When I was at Bank of America getting a cashiers check to send to Embassy of Philippines it happened to be a lady and she asked why I was getting a check to pay her country. When I said I was married to a Filipina she said "oh I want to meet her please bring her next time.. etc". That kind of thing has been the majority of my experience in California.

Edited June 3, 2011 by lbounds

[I AM NOT THAT GUY 5,715]

I always meet people (mostly white) on the street or in an elevator etc who greet you (Good morning, How are you?) even if they don't personally know you. I also met a lot of Filipinos who doesn't even bother to smile.

Is this a culture thing, or is it because we are just afraid to be rejected? Are we scared to smile or greet for fear that it might not be a Filipino after all? Or are some Filipinos just snobs and think highly of their stature now that they live comfortably abroad? I am just wondering...

If the white people can say "Hi, how are you?", why can't we?

It depends who you are with, and how you got here. They say to themselves, "Oh, she got herself a big fish."

[tonylovesam 8]

for me, culture. and maybe for others due to "dont talk to strangers" rule.

[honey_me 7]

I consider myself not the friendliest when I was still in PI but would gladly respond if I'm greeted sincerely. When I got here, I notice people love to greet each other, I always get hi and how are yous that I smile, respond and do the same to others. I also love how people hold the door for me which I also do. Add the many times I hear "thank you", especially riding a bus or wherever and random "you're pretty/beautiful(from female/male strangers)" even if I didn't have anything on my face and wearing kids size shirt. I consider Americans one of the nicest and friendliest, I maybe lucky though most are nice to me or I'm too much of a happy person now that I don't know when someone is rude . I also believe we live in a very friendly city, so yeah(won't be leaving this city ever ). What I usually do back in PI or when I get a feeling some is a Filipino here is to smile if they smile at me or nod which is my equivalent to saying hi.

[Richie Rich 70]

I always meet people (mostly white) on the street or in an elevator etc who greet you (Good morning, How are you?) even if they don't personally know you. I also met a lot of Filipinos who doesn't even bother to smile.

Is this a culture thing, or is it because we are just afraid to be rejected? Are we scared to smile or greet for fear that it might not be a Filipino after all? Or are some Filipinos just snobs and think highly of their stature now that they live comfortably abroad? I am just wondering...

If the white people can say "Hi, how are you?", why can't we?

Why you say mostly white people are friendly to others in the street .? I am not white nor black but color do not determines politeness. My Fiancee is from the philippines . Maybe your fellow pinays are yet to adapt to the cultural shock .Trust me --when they are adapt to it --they are more ''Americanised '' than I .

[SuperDuper! 230]

Using the verb "to do" in the same sentence, while separated by only a single noun, may have something to do with it. Just kidding of course. My grammer twitch kicked in when I saw the title. "Why do Filipinos don't...?" AAACCCKKK!!!

hopefully you know that nagging a spouse's spelling or grammar is a symbolic death knell for the relationship.

[gretchen_darren 67]

need to know where you are. It depends on the city and town. Some places Filipinos just do not want the hassle in their lives of a conversation. They may be running to some errand or something. It is not being impolite, but they know a conversation is not just a polite "how are you" in American. To them, greeting one another is greeting family. And they like to see how their families are related or how they know each other if at all. If they are unrelated when meeting, you can be sure that soon someone from one family will marry someone from the other family. It is just something in Filipino traditions. Do not be offended, just be understanding that right now they do not want a long conversation. Trust me, when I was leaving a hotel in Butuan, it took me an hour to just get out to the main entrance. Every staff person stopped me to thank me for being there. which lead to more conversation. I know the staff there will remember me or at least my fiance I am just glad I knew from my fiance and planned for it as well as at the airports.

[~happyndinlove~ 540]

I have seen those type of Pinays not only in our area but in a different places. Snobs, stuck up and would size you up whether or not you're driving a Mercedez and carrying a LV purse.

I am not a snob kind of person but, definitely not the type of "hi/hello" one either. So, this thing never really bothered me at all. Life is too short and, I've got better things to do than thinking about 'em. In fact, they're just making me laugh. Because I know for a fact that some fellow Pinays are indeed like that.

Just ignore them and don't let them ruin or, at the very least, affect your precious day, IMO.

Cheers!

Edited June 3, 2011 by ~happyndinlove~

[Thunderstruck 1]

I consider Americans one of the nicest and friendliest, I maybe lucky though most are nice to me or I'm too much of a happy person now that I don't know when someone is rude . I also believe we live in a very friendly city, so yeah(won't be leaving this city ever ).

I find that ironic because I always felt the exact opposite. I've been to the Philippines 4 times and each time almost everyone has been very friendly and at least smiled if we made eye contact if not an actual hello. Most would go far beyond that and were very polite and kind. But I am a kano and a foreigner so maybe that has something to do with it. I always noted when I got back to the USA how differently the people in the airport workers acted here in America. Rude, or abrupt at best. But it does depend on where you live in the USA. Some cities are not friendly (including my own Philadelphia) and others are more friendly. For instance when I brought my fiancee back here on her K1 we flew into Minneapolis and I warned her that people in the USA at airports are rude and nasty. Well we had the complete opposite experience. Everyone including the customs officer were very very nice. If they were Filipino I would have thought I was back in the Philippines.

My experience is that the further you live from the city, the more friendly people seem to be. I grew up in rural New York State and the people there are 95% very friendly to everyone including complete strangers. Travel 6 or 7 hours east to New York City and you will find the complete opposite. City people seem to be more wary of strangers and its basic survival instincts to be cautious and be blind to everything around them. Maybe that is how the Pinay are when they come here.

[John&Juvy 36]

I work in a hotel, meet lots of different people from different places everyday including filipino's. But honestly sometimes it is hard for me to tell if they really are Filipino's, Chinese or Thai... I have to hear them speak first before I can tell that their filipino's. Some of them still speak english but I can still tell their filipino coz they have the same accent like mine lol I think. Then I just start asking them if their from Philippines, and that's how the short conversation goes, like if where they live here in US and if how long they been here .

.

Probably same situation with other filipino's and maybe not for some, or maybe they just having a bad day lol..... who know's. Just do your thing and dont be bother by other peoples action. You dont know them, they dont know you.. end of the story lol.

[jalie 3]

I always meet people (mostly white) on the street or in an elevator etc who greet you (Good morning, How are you?) even if they don't personally know you. I also met a lot of Filipinos who doesn't even bother to smile.

Is this a culture thing, or is it because we are just afraid to be rejected? Are we scared to smile or greet for fear that it might not be a Filipino after all? Or are some Filipinos just snobs and think highly of their stature now that they live comfortably abroad? I am just wondering...

If the white people can say "Hi, how are you?", why can't we?

Yes of course we can, but what if you have been doing it for years and most of the time you get rejected? My 12 year old (then)daughter told me several times, "why do you insist on greeting our co-Filipinos if they do not even smile at you". I am talking of Filipinos in Italy. This kind of attitude baffles me until now. Now that I'm in the US I see that the pattern is pretty much the same. I am new in Texas and eager to have Pinoy friends so I smile a lot to every co-national that I encounter but so far no fruit yet. Maybe I really have to go and approach them and say, "how are you". I have greeted mistakenly in the past lots of Japanese, Thais, Malaysians and the like so the problem with me lies not on that. It's more of the fact that I'm afraid to be snubbed like in the past. And so the Filipino who sees me evaluates me as a snob too.

I'm all praises to the Filipinos in Spain and Prague because they are way too friendly and hospitable, inviting you for a meal in their place without even knowing you.

I don't think its a culture thing. I guess it has got to do with the population. Say, if you live in a certain place for quite sometime and have not seen any co-national yet I bet the minute you see one you'd go running to meet/greet her. But if you live in a certain place full of Pinoys and they seem to be succesful in their careers driving BMWs and Mercedes comparing with my raggedy rickety Mazda, of course I'd feel ashamed to greet them.

[rlogan 2,036]

Can't say I notice one way or the other. Some circumstances are more conducive to conversation, like if you are next to each other in line at the register. A smile and a nod usually at a distance. Usually an older guy with a younger gal. Not sure why it works out that way. What the appeal is to younger women.

We don't go to functions. But when we meet others we like to get an introduction. Find out where they are from. Just say hi.

[honey_me 7]

I find that ironic because I always felt the exact opposite. I've been to the Philippines 4 times and each time almost everyone has been very friendly and at least smiled if we made eye contact if not an actual hello. Most would go far beyond that and were very polite and kind. But I am a kano and a foreigner so maybe that has something to do with it. I always noted when I got back to the USA how differently the people in the airport workers acted here in America. Rude, or abrupt at best. But it does depend on where you live in the USA. Some cities are not friendly (including my own Philadelphia) and others are more friendly. For instance when I brought my fiancee back here on her K1 we flew into Minneapolis and I warned her that people in the USA at airports are rude and nasty. Well we had the complete opposite experience. Everyone including the customs officer were very very nice. If they were Filipino I would have thought I was back in the Philippines.

My experience is that the further you live from the city, the more friendly people seem to be. I grew up in rural New York State and the people there are 95% very friendly to everyone including complete strangers. Travel 6 or 7 hours east to New York City and you will find the complete opposite. City people seem to be more wary of strangers and its basic survival instincts to be cautious and be blind to everything around them. Maybe that is how the Pinay are when they come here.

Yes, it depends on the city whether it's friendly or not, ours is. I wasn't friendly in PI, rarely smile and only have few friends(still have) but I respond if someone is nice to me. I observe people whether they're humble, not nosy/gossipy or I have chemistry with them. I may have also expected the worst of US or none at all(I have been told by an old neighbor who has been here more than ten years,not to be too friendly). When I got here, most were welcoming and warm(in laws and relatives). I still remember the strangers who greeted us on our wedding day. For some reason I find people here more expressive(in words) which I like because I wasn't before. Also, we have been in other states/cities and I am fully aware there are a lot of rude people out there or even here. But then again, I surround myself with those who appreciate me and treated me well that it's magnified and if not I don't get bothered I can always walk away anyways.

So yes, I maybe one of those who changed when in US. It may not be all Pinay though. I'm happy here that I appreciate anything, good or bad and if only my family is here, it will be the best . I smiled a lot when we went home last year so being married and US did good to me .