ayubowan

English

Etymology

From Sinhalese ආයුබෝවන් (āyubōwan).

Interjection

ayubowan

1. (Sri Lanka) Salutation wishing the recipient a long life, typically as a greeting or a goodbye.
   • 1963, Punyakante Wijenaike, The third woman and other stories - Part 1963, page 48:

     "Ayubowan, I am looking for a yam for my Suduhamy." I said.

   • 2007 June 3, Vidushi Seneviratne, “Echo of Koggala cradle”, in The Sunday Times:

     Charming girls dressed in the traditional, low-country reddha and hattaya, welcomed the invitees at the regal Galle Face Hotel, with a customary ayubowan.

   • 2008, Royston Ellis, Sri Lanka: The Bradt Travel Guide, page 27:

     The cabin crew are all Sri Lankan and passengers are greeted on boarding with the traditional ayubowan ('may you have long life').

Quotations

• For more quotations using this term, see Citations:ayubowan.
• Ayubowan - ආයුබෝවන් | Salutation wishing a long life | SLBC