I walk through the school gates and am greeted with an excited “Hello, Mr. Payton!” by the handful of students standing nearby. Walking around a corner, I turn toward the teacher’s room, where a couple of other students are talking about something. They say “Hello!” and one of them puts out his right hand in greeting. I put my right hand in his, as I would for the gentle handshake I have exchanged with other adults, but instead of shaking my hand, he bows a little, lifting the back of my hand to his forehead and then putting his hand on his heart after he did so. One by one, each of the students does the same, and we go about our business. What just happened?!
Greetings and why people greet each other the ways that they do. When the students greeted me by putting the back of my hand to their foreheads, they were showing respect to me as a teacher. People from children to college students greet their elders in that way, especially if it is obvious that the person is older than you, like if they have white hair or look like they could be your parent. Once they are adults, people usually greet with a gentle handshake, or with a bow with their hands together if they are different genders, out of respect for Islamic religious gender norms (most Indonesians are Muslim, although handshaking has been really common in my experience).
