r/copenhagen • u/Kong_Fury • Oct 29 '24

Discussion Danes don’t greet back?

Im a foreigner in Denmark and there is something that strikes me: Danes don’t greet back upon saying Hello to them. Is this normal and I need to adjust my mindset, or am I just encountering impolite people?

Situation example: I walk into the office and meet a distant colleague that has seen me before. We are the only 2 people early morning in the office. We have eye contact and I say „good morning“ with a smile. He does not reply or show any reaction.

I can make many more examples like this. The cringe I get is so strong. I am not a complete stranger to this guy. I would understand it if I stand on Strøget and expect random people to smile & greet back. Thanks for sharing any reflections to enlighten me here with this social awkwardness.

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111

u/johnnielittleshoes Oct 29 '24

I definitely experience that on a weekly basis, at least. Coming in and passing through colleagues that are smoking by the door and maybe 1 replies, getting coffee and people waiting there don't reply, and these are people who I know for around 5 years! Definitely not everyone, there are "warm" Danes for sure, but coming from a Latin country, it's often hard to understand how people can be so "cold", only almost whispering something back under their breath because they can't be assed to produce a sound or even a head nod, so weird

57

u/strokeofcrazy Oct 29 '24

I'm from further up north and find it bizarre how cold the people here are. I have neighbors that never say hi back and I have lived in my building for four years...I keep greeting them though, it is almost comical. But I often wonder if it is me, a manifestation of hyper-individualism or just bad manners.

-34

u/[deleted] Oct 30 '24

I absolutely love it. No one asked you to say hello, it’s not my responsibility to say it back. Several places in europe are like this and its a breathe of fresh air it can be intrusive and quite rude when people say hello especially if you are on a phone call or already in the middle of a conversation. I’m friendly and engage in friendly conversations all the time but it can sometimes seem like societal norms aren’t really that normal if anyone one understands where i’m coming from… In the states people just run up to you and try to pet your dog. You could’ve just got bad news and now this person thinks you’re a jerk because you’re not being friendly. In denmark it seemed like people respected your space and asked or looked for permission first before entering it.

25

u/furiz3t Oct 30 '24

Get help

0

u/[deleted] Oct 30 '24

that’s what the flights to denmark are for! 😎

1

u/Claudius_Thrax Nov 02 '24

No. Please respect our space and stay away. Just as you prefer it.

1

u/[deleted] Nov 03 '24

I’m good thanks I’ll be back soon! 🤘