merhaba (Turkish)

Where does "merhaba" come from?

The Turkish noun 'merhaba', meaning 'hi, hello, greeting', is inherited from Ottoman Turkish 'merhaba'[1]. That Ottoman Turkish term itself comes from the Arabic 'marḥaban', which translates to 'hello, welcome'[1][2]. The Arabic term ultimately stems from a root associated with the concept of making someone welcome or receiving them graciously[3].

Full etymology tree

• merhaba (Turkish), 'hi, hello, greeting'
  • inherited مرحبا (merhaba) (Ottoman Turkish), 'hello, welcome'
    • borrowed مرحبا (marḥaban) (Arabic), 'hello, welcome'

Ancestors

• مرحبا (Ottoman Turkish)

Sources

1. merhaba (Turkish) - Wiktionary
2. مرحبا (merhaba) (Ottoman Turkish) - Wiktionary
3. مرحبا (marḥaban) (Arabic) - Wiktionary

Updated September 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris