You're kindly invited to....

[Wiresring]

What does this mean?

I keep getting messages from my GP inviting me to their Wellness day.

Are they being kind in inviting me? Are they asking me to be kind and go?

I guess it's to differentiate from 'you are cruelly and callously compelled to attend an event that is essential and if you don't we'll permanently kick off out of our service?!

So you know it's optional

Cordially is the word - but sounds a bit formal.

Brings to mind the illiterate but common use of ‘may you’ to mean could you, by people trying to be polite but getting it wrong.

‘You are kindly invited. May you respond by Friday’.

‘You are cordially invited. May you respond to myself by Friday.”

Just so

But... who is the kind person?

Are you saying that you are being kind for inviting me, or am I kind for attending?

Ugh. This happens so often and it doesn’t make any sense. Often it seems to mean that you are being asked if you would kindly do something.

But sometimes it reads as though it is being used as some kind of generic politeness filler.

But why do Mr and Mrs So and So need to describe themselves as being kind? “We are being nice and inviting you”? “We are kind people so we’ve put you on the list”?

Cordial really does seem the appropriate word.

agree

"Warmly" would also do, I think.

'Warmly' is nice. 'Cordially' has gone out of fashion though it is rather a good word.
My guess is that at some point 'cordially' was misheard as 'kindly' and somewhere in the world it started being used as a substitute. This is how language evolves and there's nothing wrong with it as such, but it sounds odd if you aren't familiar with this usage. 'You are kindly invited to join us for a picnic in the park, bring your own food' ... Hmm, since it's a public place I'm not sure that it is so very kind of you to ask me to turn up....

It’s just to make clear that they’re not bossily or officially demanding that you attend this or that.

I don’t want to be told that someone is kindly inviting me to something. I may thank them for their kind invitation, but I want to be the judge of whether or not the invitation is kind.

I have the same view of receiving “courtesy calls” which I seldom want.

It’s wrong though. I’m sure you’re right about the intention, that they’re requesting rather than demanding your attendance. ‘We invite your kind attendance’ would be the right way around.

Yes, that's what I thought. Who are they to be telling me that they're being kind?

‘I generously give you this gift’ follows the same pattern. It’s pompous and superior.

‘I bestow upon you this kind invitation, this generous gift, my precious time’. Who does this host think they are, the Queen?

Charitably though, I wonder if the originator was trying to avoid a split infinitive?

’I invite you kindly to attend’ sounds a little formal but they wanted to avoid ‘I invite you to kindly attend’. Maybe.

I don't mind it. A bit old fashioned, but that's okay. I've realised part of the reason I enjoy watching Bridgerton is the traditional "proper" way they all speak, and so clearly.

Do many people really still try to avoid split infinitives?

AFAIK the rule about not splitting was introduced by 18thC grammarians, who were trying to standardise the English language.

They argued that because you can’t split a Latin infinitive - because it’s one word - and to them Latin was a ‘perfect’ language, you should not therefore split them in English.

Which is clearly a load of old cobblers.

No I was being a bit tongue in cheek there.

But it is possible someone didn’t like the sound of ‘You’re invited to kindly attend’.

"Oh I'm glad that put that or I would have thought I was horribly invited". FFS 🙄😬🤦‍♂️🤣