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How To Say Hello In Hausa + Other Useful Hausa Greetings

Wondering how to say hello in Hausa? 

This post covers how to greet people in Hausa and teaches you some essential phrases including ‘hello’, ‘good morning’, ‘good afternoon’ and ‘good night’. 

It also covers some other greeting etiquette such as how to greet elders.

Hopefully you’ll leave this page knowing some essential Hausa greetings.

How Do You Say Hello In Hausa?

If you want to say hello in Hausa then you can do so with the following phrases.

I’ve included pronunciation examples where possible, click on the Hausa word to hear the pronunciation.

This is an informal way to say hello in Hausa.

  • Hello (to a group) – Sannun ku

This phrase is used to say ‘hello everyone’ if you’re speaking to more than 1 person. It’s fairly informal.

Another common greeting you will hear is ‘salaam alaikum’ which is actually borrowed from the Arabic greeting phrase. 

It’s a common Muslim greeting that means ‘peace be upon you’ and is commonly used as Islam is the main religion practiced by Hausa people.

How To Say Other Greetings In Hausa e.g. ‘Good Morning’

You may want to use some other greetings in Hausa such as ‘good morning’, ‘good afternoon’ and ‘good night’. Check out these other Hausa greetings below:

How To Say Good Morning In Hausa

To say good morning in Hausa, you can say:

This phrase is used to say ‘good morning’ but literally it means ‘how is your morning?’.

You should reply to this question by saying ‘fine’ or ‘very good’.

  • Fine – Lafiya lau
  • Very good – Lafiya kalau

It’s seen as respectful to bow if you say this phrase to an elder or someone more senior than you.

Another way to say good morning in Hausa is:

This phrase is a lot more posh and is mainly used by the upper classes. It’s also very formal.

You should respond to this phrase by saying ‘barka kadai’.

How To Say Good Afternoon In Hausa

To say good afternoon in Hausa, you can say:

  • Good afternoon – Ina wuni

This phrase can be used to say ‘good afternoon’ but it literally means ‘how is your day?’.

You should reply to this question and say ‘fine’ or ‘very good’.

  • Fine – Lafiya lau
  • Very good – Lafiya kalau

Another way to say good afternoon in Hausa is:

This phrase is a lot more posh and is mainly used by the upper classes. It’s also very formal.

You should respond to this phrase by saying ‘barka kadai’.

How To Say Good Evening In Hausa

To say good evening in Hausa, you can say:

  • Good evening – Ina wuni

You can also use the phrase ‘ina wuni’ to say good evening in Hausa as well as good afternoon. 

Another way to say good evening in Hausa is:

This phrase is a lot more posh and is mainly used by the upper classes. It’s also very formal.

You should respond to this phrase by saying ‘barka kadai’.

How To Say Good Night In Hausa

To say good night in Hausa, you can say:

  • Good night – Sai da safe

This version of good night is used if you’re saying going to bed or leaving for the night. It literally means ‘until the morning’.

You can also use ‘barka da dare’ to say good night in Hausa. This is used if you’re greeting someone at night time. 

To hear the pronunciation of all the above phrases by a native Hausa speaker, check out the below videos:

Hausa Greeting Etiquette

Hausa culture is very formal. If you’re speaking with someone you don’t know or someone who is older than you, you always use formal speech. 

This applies even if you’re speaking to a relative, if they are older than you always use formal speech.

Older relatives may greet you with informal speech but you should reply using formal greetings to show respect. 

For example, an uncle may greet a niece with an informal greeting however the niece will usually reply with a more formal response.

When greeting it’s also customary to ask about someone’s family, work, children etc. This can make greetings quite long but it is polite. 


Thanks for reading this post on how to greet someone in Hausa. Continue your conversation by learning how to say ‘how are you?’ in Hausa.

Hopefully you now know how to say ‘hello’ in Hausa and also how to say ‘good morning’, ‘good afternoon’ and ‘good night’ in Hausa.

You can find out more about the Hausa language here.

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