David did an Irish goodbye last night at the bar.

My comments:

To do an Irish goodbye is for David to leave the bar without saying “Goodbye” to anyone whom he’s been drinking with.

I am not 100 percent certain but am pretty sure this phrase originated in the Irish bar, or pub. The Irish, among other things, love to drink. They drink a lot and, as a result, many get drunk.

And when you’re drunk, you don’t often remember to say “Goodbye” properly to everyone you know before you leave.

If you remember any social etiquette at all, that is.

Understandable?

Anyways, to do the Irish goodbye is to take your leave without uttering the usual niceties.

Perhaps the Irish know better. When your tongues are stiff, the usual niceties will not sound so nice after all.

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本文僅代表作者本人觀點，與本網立場無關。歡迎大家討論學術問題，尊重他人，禁止人身攻擊和發布一切違反國家現行法律法規的內容。

About the author:

Zhang Xin（張欣） has been with China Daily since 1988, when he graduated from Beijing Foreign Studies University. Write him at: zhangxin@chinadaily.com.cn, or raise a question for potential use in a future column.