Etymology

long time no see

Today it means: I (or we) have not seen you for a long time. Full definition →

Cantonese 好耐冇見 /好耐冇见 ← Mandarin 很久沒見 /很久没见
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The story

  1. Mandarin · calque of好久不見 /好久不见
  2. Mandarin · calque of很久沒見 /很久没见
  3. Cantonese · calque of好耐冇見 /好耐冇见
  4. English todaylong time no see

Uncertain. Possibly a calque of Cantonese 好耐冇見 /好耐冇见 (hou² noi⁶ mou⁵ gin³), Mandarin 很久沒見 /很久没见 (hěnjiǔméijiàn), Mandarin 好久不見 /好久不见 (hǎojiǔbùjiàn), or similar expressions in other Chinese varieties, comparable to no can do or chop-chop – if so, most likely US Chinatown origin, or, alternatively, British Far East such as Hong Kong. Alternatively, native American origin, or native coinage as pidgin, particularly in cinematic portrayals of native Americans; compare language used by Tonto (1930s).

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.