Culture–Health! Money! and Love!
All cultures (at least all that I know of) value “Health”, “Money”, and “Love.” If any of you readers out there know of a culture anywhere in the world that doesn’t value health, money, or love, I’d love to hear about it.
These three words when used together form a very small portion of Latin American culture, but in a way you might not have guessed. These specific three words are said when someone sneezes! If you sneeze once, Latin people will say “Health!” If you sneeze a twice, they will say “Money!” and a third sneeze in a row brings “Love!”
I have allergies and generally when I sneeze, I sneeze about 6 or 7 times in a row! Usually I catch Latin people off-guard because after “Health!”, “Money!” and “Love!” they run out of things to say.
Sometimes people in Latin America will just say “Health!” and forget the rest (especially if you sneeze a million times). However, many are eager to wish you all three: “Health!”, “Money!” and “Love!” every time you sneeze.
You might think it sounds a little peculiar to say “Health!” when someone sneezes, but if you think about it, it makes a little more sense than the phrase we say in English — “Bless you!”. In the dictionary, the word “bless” means “to consecrate by religious rite or word”. It’s almost as if we’re trying to bless someone religiously when they sneeze when we say “bless you”. The Spanish version makes more sense to me; you are wishing someone good “Health” so they can get well and avoid more germ-filled sneezes. So, why do they add “Money” and “Love” to multiple sneezes? I’m not exactly sure, but if you wish someone “Health”, you might as well add “Money” and “Love” and offer them the complete package—because who doesn’t want health, money, and love!
Just remember how to say them in Spanish, one sneeze = Health – “Salud” [saw-lood]. Two sneezes = Money – “Dinero” [dee-neh-row]. And, a third sneeze = Love – “Amor ” [Ah-more].
Now for the interesting part for me, I would love to know what people around the world say when someone else sneezes—please comment if you know.
Moral of the Story: This week’s topic is a fun little cultural phrase that people say when someone sneezes. Be daring and try it out the next time you hear a Latin person sneeze!
Sneak peek at next week: “Don’t Waste Your Food – All Parts of the Cow!!?”
¡Hasta luego! (”Until later!”)
David S. Clark — President / Director
To learn Spanish, click here!
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