When a Native American greets you by saying, "How!", don't laugh. That's not some big joke for you to laugh at. In fact, if you trace the history and origins of the term, you will maybe get a shock. Because the joke may be on you.
Back in the day, the Indians were all like, "man, every time the white man comes around, he's all like 'how?' 'How do you get the corn to grow so good, red man?' 'How do you start the fire like that?' 'How do you sit on the floor, or drink water "Indian fashion"?' Every damn sentence out of these white guys' mouths starts with 'How?'!" And then Chief Heap Big Sarcasm made a suggestion that from now on, everybody should adopt the white man's signature greeting as their own. It was looked at as a polite and subtle form of ridicule.
You have to have some historical perspective. At that point, they were clearly the more advanced culture. We did not show up bristling with moon-rockets - all that stuff came way later. Back in those early days, when we first landed upon the various large rocks scattered up and down the Eastern seaboard for that purpose, we immediately saw that the indigenous population was leaps and bounds ahead of us, in terms of what we Americans have always called "know-how." In this case, it was the natural native wisdom of the land that we ourselves had been cut off from, due to our posh European upbringing. Because we were like, "How will we last the winter? We have no provisions!" And then people were like - "How about we ask those dudes in the woods? They seem to be getting along pretty well - and look how they're dressed!"
Before long, a lively exchange of views and ideas began thriving, as well as some valuable cultural interchange in the form of alcohol and diseases. But from the standpoint of the Native American at the time, making the subtle point that the white man was so ignorant that the standard greeting of his culture was "How?" - to adopt that in their dealings with us was a pretty subtle move that displays a fine, shrewd sense of humor.
That's why it sticks in my craw when ignorant moderns try to use it as some kind of stereotypical caricature! Learn your peoples' histories, peoples!
Back in the day, the Indians were all like, "man, every time the white man comes around, he's all like 'how?' 'How do you get the corn to grow so good, red man?' 'How do you start the fire like that?' 'How do you sit on the floor, or drink water "Indian fashion"?' Every damn sentence out of these white guys' mouths starts with 'How?'!" And then Chief Heap Big Sarcasm made a suggestion that from now on, everybody should adopt the white man's signature greeting as their own. It was looked at as a polite and subtle form of ridicule.
You have to have some historical perspective. At that point, they were clearly the more advanced culture. We did not show up bristling with moon-rockets - all that stuff came way later. Back in those early days, when we first landed upon the various large rocks scattered up and down the Eastern seaboard for that purpose, we immediately saw that the indigenous population was leaps and bounds ahead of us, in terms of what we Americans have always called "know-how." In this case, it was the natural native wisdom of the land that we ourselves had been cut off from, due to our posh European upbringing. Because we were like, "How will we last the winter? We have no provisions!" And then people were like - "How about we ask those dudes in the woods? They seem to be getting along pretty well - and look how they're dressed!"
Before long, a lively exchange of views and ideas began thriving, as well as some valuable cultural interchange in the form of alcohol and diseases. But from the standpoint of the Native American at the time, making the subtle point that the white man was so ignorant that the standard greeting of his culture was "How?" - to adopt that in their dealings with us was a pretty subtle move that displays a fine, shrewd sense of humor.
That's why it sticks in my craw when ignorant moderns try to use it as some kind of stereotypical caricature! Learn your peoples' histories, peoples!
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