Terms of Greetings and Taking Leave in English and Maithili

Abstract

This research work was an attempt to list out and compare the terms of greeting and taking leave used by the native speakers of Maithili with those in English terms. For this purpose the researcher consulted the population of different VDCs of Dhanusha district. A questionnaire was used to collect current data from selected sample population. In the case of English, secondary sources of information available in books and theses were used. The data was collected from five VDCs of Dhanusha district. A very sample statistical tool was used, (i.e. table) to analyze and interpret the collected data. The finding of the study show that there are a very few terms of greetings and taking leave in English in comparison to the Maithili Language. In English ‘hello”, “hi”, “good morning/evening/afternoon’ are common terms of greeting. ‘Good-bye’, ‘bye- bye’, ‘see you’ and ‘love you’ are common terms of taking leave. The Maithili Language has got a number of terms for greeting and taking leave. Such as, ki chhai, ram-ram, sita-ram, dandawat, pranam, Namaste are the terms of greeting for seniors and, Namaste, pranam, jug-jug jeyo, gyane ban are the terms for juniors. In the case of taking leave lia to jai chhee, Namaste are for seniors and le tu baith, hum jai chhee, achchhato Namaste are for juniors. Maithili spekers use different types of address terms while speaking with the seniors and juniors but English speakers use the same terms to seniors and juniors. The study has been presented in four chapters: the first chapter deals with general background, languages functions, introduction to the terms of greeting and taking leave, language of Nepal, the Maithili language, objectives of the study, significance of the study and literature review. The second chapter includes the methodology which consists of sources of data, sample population and sampling procedure, tools for data collection, process of data collection and limitations of the study. The third chapter deals with analysis, interpretation and presentation of data. The data have been analyzed and interpreted descriptively and comparatively. The last chapter consists of finding and recommendations.