How do you say “Christmas” in Spanish? How do they have fun Christmas in Spanish-speaking cultures?
Right here’s all of the solutions you ever needed to know concerning the holidays in Spanish!
Apart from Christmas Day itself, there are different holidays celebrated in Spanish-speaking nations over the winter. A few of these are even larger than Christmas Day, and general the winter festivities final a few month. These different holidays usually give attention to holy feast days from eighth December to sixth January. That stated, Christmas Day has turn out to be extra well-liked to have fun,
So in addition to studying about Christmas in Spanish and all the vacation vocabulary you want, let’s be taught concerning the distinctive vacation traditions from across the Spanish-speaking world.
Felices vacaciones! (“Glad Holidays!”)
“Merry Christmas” in Spanish
How do you say “Merry Christmas” in Spanish?
¡Feliz Navidad!
In English, feliz interprets as “joyful” and navidad means “nativity”. So, it really means “Glad Christmas” or “Glad Nativity”. Chances are you’ll acknowledge the phrase from the favored tune – Feliz Navidad.
How would you say “Glad Christmas Eve”?
In Spanish, “Christmas Eve” is Nochebuena, which implies “the Good Evening”. So that you might need guessed it: “Glad Christmas Eve” is Feliz Nochebuena.
Nochebuena is the day most large celebrations occur in Spain, just like the dinner feast with household and Midnight Mass. Households usually keep up all night time throughout Nochebuena celebrating collectively and opening items.
Enjoyable reality: The normal Christmas flower, the Poinsettia, can be referred to as Flor de Nochebuena (“The flower of the Good Evening”).
“Glad New 12 months” in Spanish
You may want somebody a “Glad New 12 months” by saying Feliz Año Nuevo. It is a literal translation, with feliz that means “joyful”, año that means “12 months”, and nuevo that means “new”. In Spanish, the adjective comes after the noun it describes, so it actually interprets as “Glad 12 months New”.
However, it’s also possible to want somebody a “affluent new 12 months”. You may say ¡Feliz Navidad y Próspero Año Nuevo! to want somebody “Merry Christmas and Glad New 12 months” in Spanish.
Plenty of New 12 months traditions welcome in prosperity for the brand new 12 months, so Próspero Año Nuevo is often used.
For New 12 months’s Eve, you say Nochevieja. It really interprets as “previous night time”, as a result of it’s the final day of the previous 12 months.
There are a number of hispanic superstitions about beginning the brand new 12 months utterly new and contemporary. Many individuals ensure that they’ve cleaned their properties, and put on all new garments. This fashion, nothing from the previous 12 months comes with them into the brand new one.
Some folks imagine that is essential to thrust back unhealthy luck.
50+ Extra Spanish Phrases and Phrases for the Christmas Season
So how do you discuss Christmas in Spanish? How do you inform somebody to countdown to midnight, and discuss your New 12 months’s Decision?
Listed here are all of the phrases it is advisable to discuss concerning the holidays in Spanish.
Christmas Spanish Vocabulary
- To want – Desear
- Angel – Ángel
- To embellish – Decorar
- Christmas tree – Árbol de Navidad
- Winter – Invierno
- Snow – Nieve
- Sleigh bells – Campanas de trineo
- Presents – Regalos
- Mistletoe – Muérdago
- Reindeer – Reno
- Santa Claus- Papá Noel
- Sweet cane – Bastón de caramelo
- Christmas card – Tarjeta de Navidad
- Snowman – Muñeco de nieve
- Have a good time – Celebrar
- Dinner – Cena
- Chimney – Chimenea
- Eggnog – Ponche de huevo
- Candles – Velas
- Elf – Elfo
- Decoration – Adorno
- Household – Familia
- Star – Estrella
- Fire – Hogar
- Chestnuts – Castañas
- Carols – Villancicos
- Gingerbread man / Gingerbread home – Hombre de pan de jengibre / Casa de jengibre
- Vacation – Vacaciones
- Scorching chocolate – Chocolate caliente
- Jolly – Alegre
- Christmas lights – Luces de Navidad
- Naughty – Travieso
- Good – Agradable
- Goodwill – Buena voluntad
- Nutcracker – Cascanueces
- Stocking – Calcetín navideño
- Tinsel – Oropel
- Good tidings – Buenas nuevas
- Wrapping paper – Papel de regalo
- December 25 – Vienticinco de diciembre
New 12 months’s Spanish Vocabulary
- Twelve o’clock – Las doce
- Countdown – Cuenta regresiva
- New 12 months’s decision – Propósito de año nuevo
- Balloons – Globos
- Confetti – Confeti
- Midnight – Medianoche
- Grapes – Uvas
- Champagne – Champán
- Fireworks – Fuegoes artificiales
- Midnight kiss – Beso de medianoche
- Clock – Reloj
- Ring within the New 12 months – Anillo en el año nuevo
- Calendar – Calendario
- Custom – Tradicion
- January 1st – Primero de enero
If you wish to be taught extra Spanish Vocabulary, try this video on tips on how to be taught Spanish on-line:
Spanish Christmas and Winter Vacation Traditions
With all of the vocab I’ve given you, you’re possible prepared to speak about your personal traditions and holidays in Spanish. So, let’s study Spanish cultural traditions and distinctive holidays.
There are foolish Spanish traditions, spiritual Spanish feast days, and a day even larger than Christmas in most Spanish-speaking nations. Possibly this 12 months, you’ll be able to attempt a Spanish custom, too!
Tió de Nadal
This one would possibly confuse tennis followers at first, but it surely has no ties to the long-lasting Rafael Nadal or his uncle and coach Tony.
Celebrated in Catalonia, Tió de Nadal means “Christmas Log”, but it surely’s additionally referred to as Caga Tió – the “Pooping Log”.
A wooden log is dressed up with a face, picket legs, and a hat on the feast day of the Immaculate Conception on December eighth. Youngsters need to maintain the log heat by masking it with a blanket, and feeding it small items of meals within the night.
On Christmas, the household will hit the log with a stick and ask the log to poop out treats. In the event that they took excellent care of the log, they’ll obtain their reward – often turrón, a candy nougat dessert.
El Día de los Reyes Magos
Though Christmas is now a day of gift-giving, it wasn’t all the time this manner. The normal day of gift-giving is January sixth, when the Clever Males carry the items, and never Santa Claus.
Known as El Día de los Reyes Magos (“the day of the Wizard Kings”), this vacation is predicated on the biblical story of the three Clever Males who visited Jesus shortly after he was born. Once they noticed him, they introduced him with items of frankincense, myrrh, and gold.
On January sixth, there may be often a parade throughout which the Clever Males undergo city and throw sweet to younger kids. When the children return house, they pass over their footwear, hoping for “the Kings” to fill them with presents. If the children have been unhealthy, they may obtain lumps of coal as a substitute of items.
It’s not so unhealthy in the present day, although. Prior to now, the “coal” was actual, however these days it’s really sweet!
Dia de los Santos Inocentes
The Spanish model of April Idiot’s Day, referred to as Día de los Santos Inocentes (“Day of the Holy Innocents”), occurs a couple of days after Christmas on December twenty eighth. It’s a enjoyable day of pranks and silliness, similar to April 1st might be.
El Gordo
Proper earlier than Christmas on December twenty second, the Spanish Nationwide Lottery (referred to as, El Gordo, “The Fats One”) goes on. It’s the largest lottery draw on this planet! It’s an enormous occasion, and everybody will get very enthusiastic about how a lot cash they may win.
Christmas Day Traditions within the Spanish Talking World
Christianity is essential to many Hispanic households. It’s custom for a household to eat an enormous Christmas dinner on Christmas Eve, after which go to la Misa del Gallo, which implies “Mass of the Rooster” or Midnight Mass.
Why a Rooster? It’s believed the night time Jesus was born, a rooster crowed to mark the start of a “new day”, although it was night time time.
Beléns is the Spanish phrase for Bethlehem, but it surely represents the nativity scene. Whereas most Spanish properties could have a small nativity scene, massive and grand nativity scenes are arrange in cities. They’re usually immersive, with farms and an entire market accompanying the nativity scene within the steady.
A bit like trick-or-treating and caroling combined collectively, children go round singing Christmas carols for treats. It’s referred to as pedir el aguinaldo (“ask for the Christmas deal with” or “bonus”). Typically the children obtain cash, and typically sweet, for his or her singing. It’s a enjoyable custom to unfold Christmas cheer!
Enjoyable reality: The custom typically will get pushed to the restrict. In reality, in some nations it’s widespread for youngsters to pedir el aguinaldo… at three within the morning! Undecided if I would favor that or waking as much as a home lined in rest room paper after Halloween.
New 12 months’s Traditions in Spanish Cultures
Ringing within the New 12 months in Spanish-speaking cultures entails a number of fortunate rituals!
Let’s begin with a well-known Spanish one: when the clock strikes twelve, folks will eat 12 inexperienced grapes, referred to as las doce uvas de la suerte, and make a want for every one they eat.
It’s essential to eat all of the grapes inside the first couple of minutes (and even earlier than the top of the primary minute) of the New 12 months so your needs come true.
In some areas, folks additionally eat lentils proper after midnight or for lunch the subsequent day. Lentils are small and spherical like cash, so they bring about in prosperity! However others choose to carry actual cash at midnight in hopes the New 12 months can be crammed with wealth.
As in different cultures, it’s widespread to drink champagne at midnight. However often, the champagne is flavored to carry a sure kind of luck within the New 12 months. For example, put strawberries in your champagne to draw love, or a gold ring to draw wealth.
You wish to ensure that to tug it out of the glass while you’re accomplished, so it comes true.
One other widespread Spanish custom is to put on yellow. Yellow is a fortunate color in Spain and different Hispanic nations, so it’s usually worn on New 12 months’s Eve.
However, in the event you’re on the lookout for love, you should put on purple underwear given to you by another person. Unusual because it sounds, purple underwear means luck in love within the New 12 months, however provided that it was a present.
And when the clock strikes midnight, stand in your proper foot! This begins the 12 months off “on the precise foot” – actually – so you might have an excellent 12 months.
¡Feliz Navidad y Próspero Año Nuevo!
Now, go want somebody a Merry Christmas and Glad New 12 months in Spanish! Attempt speaking concerning the new Spanish holidays you realized, too. Do you know concerning the “pooping log” or the three Clever Males who carry items as a substitute of Santa Claus?
If you’ll take a look at out some conventional hispanic methods to unfold the Christmas cheer or carry some good luck into your New 12 months, share it with me on social media. Discover me on Instagram (@irishpolyglot), TikTok (@irishpolyglot), and Twitter (@irishpolyglot), and tag away!
Wherever you’re on this planet, I hope you might have a ¡Feliz Navidad y Próspero Año Nuevo!
