Senegal C u s t om s

C o u r t e si e s

Greet ings

Gestures

VISITING

EATING

Ema-Rae- 6th

Greetings

• Courtesy is important– Shaking hands– Kissing alternate cheeks 3 times

WHEN JOINING OR LEAVING YOU HAVE TO GREET EACH PERSON INDIVIDUALLY!

Gestures• Receive/Give gifts with right hand (left is impolite.• PDA is impolite• Eating while walking on the street is in

inappropriate• Snap finger’s or “hiss” to get someone’s

attention• Children/women curtsey to their elders when

greeting or giving water• Avoid eye contact with members of opposite sex• Sharing a kola nut is a gesture of friendship

Visiting

• Dropping in uninvited is accepted & appreciated but done before meal times

• Guests get 3 rounds of tea with sugar• Friends bring fruit or sometimes cookies for

kids• It is impolite to refuse refreshments unless its

water which you have to refuse by saying you just finished some.

• It’s bad manners for women to smoke • It’s bad luck to ask questions about children

( when someone’s baby due etc..)

Eating

• Meals– Breakfast 6-9am– Lunch 12-11:30am– Dinner 8-9:30am– Sexes & different age groups eat seperately– Main dish is usually in large bowls on mats

on the floor or coffee table– Eat from same bowl with fingers or spoon– Avoid eye contact with people still eating– Only use right hand to eat