I'm such a newbie that I have to write this question in English, b/c I don't know enough Esperanto at this point.

First of all, I just want to say that I love this site! All this information on Esperanto at the click of a mouse. It's incredible!

I haven't gotten a hold of any grammar texts, yet, although I am ordering a couple from amazon.com. But until they arrive, I just have a quick question.

Why are the greetings written as if they are in the objective case? Like "bonan matenon." Is there an unspoken assumption that what is meant is "have a good morning?"

bonobobabe:Why are the greetings written as if they are in the objective case? Like "bonan matenon." Is there an unspoken assumption that what is meant is "have a good morning?"

Exactly. It's the short form of "Mi deziras al vi bonan matenon", or "I wish (to) you a good morning."