New rules regarding greetings and valedictions

[Little Girl]

Hi, friends.

I see that there's been a trend of using a period after "Hello" as a greeting in letters addressed to the general public. Is it some new rule?

Also, writers in such letters often close with just their name (mostly followed by their designation) and without any valediction. Is there a rule to it?

I also wonder if these two conventions are somehow related (i.e., when you use a period after "Hello" in letters to the general public, you must not, or it is not necessary to, use a valediction.).


Here's a letter from Harvard's President for an example:

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Hello, and welcome to Harvard.

Harvard is devoted to excellence in teaching, learning, and research, and to developing leaders across disciplines who make a positive difference in the world. The greatest strength of any institution is its people, so to all in the Harvard community—and beyond—thank you for visiting and for supporting the University.
Lawrence S. Bacow
President of Harvard
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Thanks.

 

[Rover_KE]

I can't say I've noticed a trend like you have, but there are certainly no new rules — either about salutations or closings.

Anything goes these days (except in very formal correspondence) and there's no need for you to overthink it.

 

[Tarheel]

Openings and closings

Your example doesn't have a period after Hello
Instead, it has a comma.

Ending a letter without using a closing isn't unusual at all (especially if it's an email).

 

[jutfrank]

Re: Openings and closings

The greeting Hello, and welcome to Harvard is being treated by the writer as a sentence. That's why he used a period at the end. (Whether it is strictly a sentence or not is, I think, debatable.)

If you say just Hello, or Dear John, or To whomever it may concern, or Hi, friends, these are not sentences, so they don't need periods.

 

[Tarheel]

Re: Openings and closings

I like to use an exclamation mark ("Hello!"). But on internet sites and in texting people often use nothing at all.

 

[GoesStation]

The Harvard letter would look weird to me if the first line ended with a comma. It's a complete sentence that begins with a salutation. Think of it as the first line of a speech.

 

[emsr2d2]

I use a full stop after "Hello". I don't use one after "Dear John" (I use a comma).

 

[jutfrank]

I use a full stop after "Hello". I don't use one after "Dear John" (I use a comma).

I assume you wouldn't use a full stop after Hello or Hi if it were the opening of a letter, though.

That's what I think is puzzling Little Girl here. She's thinking of the text as a (conventional) letter, in which the original greeting is the opening.

 

[emsr2d2]

Well, I probably wouldn't open a letter with "Hello" but if I did I would put a full stop after it. I see it as a one-word sentence.

 

[jutfrank]

Well, I probably wouldn't open a letter with "Hello" but if I did I would put a full stop after it. I see it as a one-word sentence.

I'm curious, then—why would you not see Dear John, if used in the same way, as a greeting opening a letter, as a sentence?

(The truth is that neither Hello nor Dear John are sentences in strict linguistics terminology, but that's probably beside the point.)

 

[emsr2d2]

Because the only way that "Dear John" could be a standalone sentence is if it ended with an exclamation mark and was, well, an exclamation.

 

[jutfrank]

Because the only way that "Dear John" could be a standalone sentence is if it ended with an exclamation mark and was, well, an exclamation.

I don't follow. The fact that it is exclaimed doesn't change its status as a (non-)sentence. The exclamation mark just shows that it's an exclamation.

Anyway, this is off-topic, so don't feel you have to respond.

 

[Little Girl]

I don't follow. The fact that it is exclaimed doesn't change its status as a (non-)sentence. The exclamation mark just shows that it's an exclamation.

Anyway, this is off-topic, so don't feel you have to respond.

I don't think it's off-topic, Frank. I, in fact, think this part of the conversation has been especially helpful for me in understanding how to punctuate "Hello" as a greeting in a letter. And now what I deduce e is it's mostly a matter of style and tone. When followed by a full-stop, it's neutral. So I think it does make sense to use a full-stop when addressing the general public.

My second question, however, still somehow remains unanswered, which is in such a case (i.e., addressing the general public) is it better to skip a closing, as even "Sincerely" and "Very truly yours" sound to work when you know the recipient or claim to be known or close to them. For instance, a country's president would like to identify himself as no one unknown to the nation and might therefore like to end his speech with "Sincerely" or "Very truly yours". What do you all think?

 

[Little Girl]

I can't say I've noticed a trend like you have, but there are certainly no new rules — either about salutations or closings.

Anything goes these days (except in very formal correspondence) and there's no need for you to overthink it.

Hehe... I can't help overthinking sometimes.

 

[Little Girl]

Re: Openings and closings

Ending a letter without using a closing isn't unusual at all (especially if it's an email).

So is it more appropriate to end a letter addressed to the general public without a closing? In the letter I posted as an example, the writer doesn't use one, and the tone is exactly how it needs to be--polite but not so friendly.

 

[Rover_KE]

Re: Openings and closings

Some people do and others don't.

Just please yourself, Little Girl — nobody's going to care much either way.;-)