This article explores the linguistic courtesy expressions of Syrian-Lebanese, second-generation immigrants in Argentina. Based on secret recordings, and employing an interpretive approach to transfer, this inquiry examines the relationship between courtesy formulas in Arabic and their equivalent in Spanish. Formulas comprising chiefly somatic elements (hands and eyes) are selected to limit the range of meanings of the targeted expressions. The approach to transfer is interpretive; the findings display how the formulas’ structures are tailored to the requirements of different languages, and how different formulas are creatively used to show and negotiate identities that are linked to the status of immigrants in Argentina and their discursive spaces.