Selam, ne haber?

A simple approximation is:

• Selam → seh-LAHM
• ne → neh
• haber → ha-BER

A smoother full pronunciation is roughly:

• seh-LAHM, neh ha-BER?

A few notes:

• e in Turkish is usually like e in bet, not like English ee.
• The r at the end of haber is pronounced, though often lightly.
• Stress in selam is usually on the second syllable: se-LAM.

Literally, ne means what and haber means news.

So ne haber? is literally something like What news?

But in real use, it means:

• What’s up?
• How’s it going?
• What’s new?

So this is a good example of a phrase whose natural meaning matters more than the word-for-word translation.

Not exactly, though both mean hello.

• Selam is usually more casual and friendly.
• Merhaba is more neutral and slightly more standard.

So:

• Selam, ne haber? sounds natural with friends, classmates, siblings, or people your age.
• Merhaba, nasılsınız? would be more appropriate in formal situations.

It is informal.

You would commonly use it with:

• friends
• cousins
• classmates
• coworkers you know well
• people around your age in relaxed settings

You would usually avoid it in more formal situations, such as:

• speaking to a teacher in a respectful context
• talking to a boss you don’t know well
• meeting an older person formally
• customer-service or official settings

Because ne haber? is a fixed expression in Turkish.

Even though var often means there is/are, Turkish does not normally say ne var? to mean what’s up? in the same casual greeting sense.

• Ne haber? = a normal greeting: What’s up?
• Ne var? can mean something more like What is it?, What’s the matter?, or What do you want?, depending on tone.

So it is best to learn ne haber? as a set phrase.

Yes, absolutely.

Both are natural:

• Selam, ne haber?
• Ne haber?

Adding selam just makes it feel like:

• Hey, what’s up?
• Hi, how’s it going?

If you already have the person’s attention, just Ne haber? is very common.

Common replies are short and casual, for example:

• İyi. → Good.
• İyiyim. → I’m good.
• Fena değil. → Not bad.
• Bir şey yok. → Nothing much.
• Aynı. → Same as usual.
• Senden? → And you?
• Ya senden? → What about you?

Because ne haber? is casual, the answer is often casual too.

Both can be used like How are you?, but they are not exactly the same.

• Nasılsın? asks more directly about how someone is feeling or doing.
• Ne haber? is more like What’s up? or What’s new?

In practice:

• Nasılsın? can sound a bit more direct and standard.
• Ne haber? sounds more relaxed and conversational.

You will often hear both in everyday speech.

Usually only if:

• you know them well, and
• the relationship is relaxed

By itself, ne haber? is informal, so with older people or in respectful situations, many learners are safer using:

• Merhaba
• Nasılsınız?

Turkish pays attention to social tone, so choosing the more polite option is often a good idea if you are unsure.

Yes, it is the same basic word.

Haber means news, information, or report depending on context.

Examples:

• haberler = the news
• iyi haber = good news
• ne haber? = literally what news?

So in this greeting, the word keeps its normal meaning, but the whole phrase functions idiomatically.

Turkish often allows short expressions without an explicit verb, especially in everyday speech.

Ne haber? is a fixed idiomatic phrase, so Turkish speakers do not need to add a verb for it to sound complete.

This is similar to how English says:

• What’s up?
• Everything okay?
• Any news?

Not every common expression follows a full textbook sentence pattern.

The comma separates two parts:

• Selam = greeting
• ne haber? = follow-up question

So the sentence is basically:

• Hi, what’s up?

In writing, the comma is natural and helpful, but in casual texting people may also write:

• Selam ne haber
• Selam, ne haber
• Selammm ne haber :)

The punctuation may change in casual messages, but the meaning stays the same.

Usually not in exactly the same way.

• Selam is a direct casual hi/hello.
• Selamlar often means something more like greetings, and is common in messages, emails, or when sending regards.

So:

• Selam, ne haber? is very natural in direct conversation.
• Selamlar, ne haber? is less typical as an everyday spoken greeting.

Yes, very common.

Selam, ne haber? is a natural everyday greeting in informal spoken Turkish and in text messages.

You may hear variations such as:

• Selam, naber?
• Naber?
• Ne haber?

These are all common in casual speech.

Naber? is the very common colloquial contraction of Ne haber?

So:

• ne haber? = more complete spelling
• naber? = casual spoken/written form

Both mean the same thing.

In texting and speech, naber? is extremely common. As a learner, it is useful to recognize both forms.

Yes, definitely.

It is very common in:

• text messages
• chats
• social media messages
• casual emails to friends

For example:

• Selam, ne haber?
• Selam naber?
• Naber?

In formal writing, though, you would usually choose something more polite and standard.

It can have historical and cultural connections with a greeting tradition also found in other languages, but in modern Turkish selam is a very normal everyday word meaning hi/hello.

For most learners, the important point is:

• it is widely used
• it sounds casual
• it is not automatically strongly religious in everyday conversation

So you can learn it simply as a common informal greeting.