Gesundheit

Gesundheit is the German word for health. When a person sneezes, Germans typically say "Gesundheit!" to wish them good health. This expression has found its way into the English language via Ashkenazi Jews who were immigrating in large masses to the United States during the early Twentieth Century. It is sometimes used instead of the more common bless you. Gesundheit is also used in Australia. It was imported to South Australia through the Evangelical Lutheran refugees who fled the established Lutheran church in the east of Germany. These Silesian immigrants spoke their own language until the 2 world wars caused a dramatic decline in the use of German in Australia. Gesundheit was used until recent times by the majority English speaking population. It's usage seems now to have declined.

There are different theories regarding the origin of this phrase. One idea is that the expression stems from the Middle Ages when the Bubonic Plague was threatening European health. In this case, the person saying gesundheit was actually wishing good health upon themselves, since they may have become infected by the one who sneezed. During this time, it was also commonly believed that sneezing made one's body vulnerable to evil spirits. Thus another plausible explanation is that gesundheit was a blessing to ward off demons while the sneezer's body was defenseless.

Superstitions date back as early as Ancient Greece (ref. Herodotus, "History" 440BCE). The soul was thought to leave the body through the nose upon death, so a powerful sneeze was thus considered an ominous event.