A Guide to New Zealand Small Talk
February 22nd, 2007 by admin
I am a German living in Wellington, New Zealand, and I sometimes have difficulties to understand the basics of Kiwi small talk.
Kiwis keep asking you how you are, but they really want to get a short answer. You have to answer, just to say “Hey” or whatever is regarded as rude behaviour.
So you usually start with:
- Hi
- Hello
- Gidday
- Morning
- Kia ora
or :
- How’s it going?
- How are things?
- How are you today?
- How are you doing?
- How are you going?
- How was your weekend?
Usually all the vocals are missing and you can`t really hear the words. Just assume that the bubble meant something like that and respond!
To respond to feeders with how:
- Fine
- Great
- Good
- Not bad
Never answer questions like that with more than two words! But you can repeat the words like “not bad, not bad”
If you pass someone you know on the street or in a bus you can ask something in return:
- What`s new?
- What have you been up to?
- What`s the latest?
- What`s happening?
and you will receive something like:
- Not a lot!
- Not much!
- Nothing much!
Again: Never answer questions like that with more than two words!
Usually that`s it, if two Kiwis met they don`t even stop. They just do this in passing.
If you want to extent the small talk from the opening exchange. You can use
- How about you?
- What about you?
- And you?
- What have you been doing?
Thanks to Helen my teacher @ “extending and challenging the advanced learner”. If you don`t think that is challenging, you have never been a German in New Zealand :-).
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