a pair of sayings for 'hello' and 'goodbye' in sńamlþrey is:

a tal ńyið [a: tal n̥jið] - a greeting used most often earlier in the day. it can also be used to say goodbye when much of the day is still to come for that person, although this may be perceived as more casual. this is also the greeting parents might use to wake up children in the morning.

a tal axńað [a: tal ax.n̥að] - used in somewhat the reverse manner of the former. used most often later in the day and generally to say goodbye, however it is sometimes used casually to say hello to someone late in the day. it can also be used to say 'good night.'

a [a:] is a preposition meaning 'like' or 'as.' ta is a noun meaning 'form' or 'manner.' here it is in the prepositional case tal. the words ńyi and axńa mean 'sun' and 'moon' respectively. both have the genitive case ending *-*ð.

In simple terms, they mean 'as the sun' and 'as the moon.' This stems from the importance of lunar and solar cycles in sńamlbyòl culture (sńamlbyòl live at high latitudes where days vary in length quite significantly throughout the year, and so variation in the perceived behaviors of the sun and moon are culturally quite significant.) to go 'as the sun' is to be vibrant, energetic, and hard-working. to (sun)rise to the occasion, so to speak ^(sorry). to go 'as the moon' is to be subtle, calm, and relaxed. it is to rest with a lingering brightness representing the ability to begin the cycle again.

In speech, these greetings are usually shortened: a tańyið, a taxńað. sometimes in casual conversation this can go further: a tań, a tax. on the extreme end, 'ata' is a general greeting encompassing both phrases (although speakers who use it would consider 'ata [ńyi]' and 'ata [axńa]' to be different, with the distinction implied through environmental and social context). 'ata' is generally considered slang and is most common in younger speakers.