Greetings (hej, godmorgen, farvel)

Saying hello

hej is the everyday greeting in Denmark. You can say it to almost anyone — a friend, a shop assistant, even your boss — and Danes also use it to say bye.

goddag (literally good day) is more formal. You hear it from older people and in polite first meetings.

Greetings for the time of day

Each one is written as ONE word.

How are you?

The usual question is hvordan går det — how is it going? The usual answer is det går godt (it is going well), and you send the question back with hvad med dig (what about you?).

Meeting someone

When you meet someone for the first time, say hyggeligt at møde dig — nice to meet you:

Welcome and goodbye

velkommen greets a guest. When you leave, say farvel (goodbye) or, if you will meet again, vi ses (see you).