How to Say Merry Christmas in Romanian (and Happy New Year)

If you’re planning to spend the Winter holidays in Romania and want to impress locals with your knowledge of the language (swearing doesn’t count!), you might want to know how to say Merry Christmas in Romanian, or maybe how to wish somebody a Happy New Year.

In today’s article, we’re going to talk about all these winter-related greetings and you’ll learn how to say these and quickly improve your knowledge of the Romanian language.

We did a similar article in the past when I taught you how to say I love you in Romanian as well as how to greet in Romanian and finally – how to say Happy Easter in the Romanian language.

So if you haven’t read these articles, remember to check them out once you’re done with this one!

Now, getting to today’s topic, let’s learn some winter greetings and other holiday-related words in Romanian!

How to say “Merry Christmas” in Romanian

Crăciun Fericit!

This is how you say “Merry Christmas” in the Romanian language: “Crăciun Fericit!” Don’t get scared of the strange letter there! It’s easier to pronounce it than you might think.

It’s true, it might be a tongue twister for most foreigners, but don’t worry about getting it perfectly. Romanians will appreciate you trying and still understand what you’re saying.

What about the pronunciation? It’s something like “crah-tschun feh-re-cheet.” Oh yes!

If somebody wishes you “Craciun Fericit” and you want to say “Merry Christmas to you too”, that would be: Craciun fericit si tie! (although just saying “Craciun Fericit” would work as well and would be a lot easier for you.)

How to say “Happy New Year” in Romanian

This one’s easier: Un an nou fericit! (Is it really easier?)

You can also follow it with a greeting that’s normally used during one’s birthday: La multi ani! (which basically means “Many years to you”!).

happy new year in Romanian

So if you want to really impress, you can say: Un an nou fericit si la multi ani! The same goes if you want to go for another tongue twisting swirl.

If you want to keep things a bit more neutral and not jump into the Christmas spirit, you can always say “Sărbători fericite” which means “Happy holidays“.

Unlike in other places where such a wish is made to ensure nobody is offended (for example, if they don’t celebrate Christmas), in Romania it usually covers all the winter holidays.

I haven’t met a single Romanian not to celebrate Christmas, even less so to get offended if you wish them a Merry Christmas, so no real need to go for “Sarbatori fericite” unless you really want to.

Chances of offending a Romanian for wishing them a merry Christmas are minimal. You can guess that easily when you see that Christmas decorations start flooding up the markets (and houses) in mid-November.

Here are some more winter and holiday-related words in Romanian, in case you want to impress your friends with your knowledge:

snow: zapada
It’s snowing: ninge
Santa Claus: Mos Craciun
Mulled Wine: Vin fiert (can’t have a winter without it)
I’m getting tipsy: Ma ametesc (just in case)
I’m cold: Imi este frig
I’m happy: Sunt fericit
Christmas: Craciun (I’m sure you had this figured out already)
I love Christmas: Iubesc Craciunul
Christmas carols: Colinde de Craciun
Christmas tree: Brad de Craciun

And this would be it in terms of Christmasy-words. Did I miss any? Let me know in the comment section below and I’ll gladly translate them for you.

And, of course, Merry Christmas to you all and a Happy New Year! Yes, Romania is not yet part of the “politically correct” revolution and we wish everybody a merry Christmas, not happy winter holidays or anything like that.

Santa Claus visiting our house a few years ago for a very “Craciun Fericit”

When it comes to Christmas in Romania, if you want more than greetings, you should know that it is customary to offer gifts to your loved ones, as well as friends and even colleagues at work. For the latter, don’t go overboard: just get something small and nice, but not expensive.

Santa Claus usually arrives on the 24th in the evening (before kids go to bed), but in some cases, if the family accepts it, the gifts can be found on the 25th in the morning, under the Christmas tree.

We don’t have the tradition of giving Christmas cards (although nobody is upset if they receive one), nor to leave milk and cookies for Santa.

Also, the Christmas stockings are not a tradition here in Romania, so expect most gifts to come in boxes or bags and the stockings to be found… nowhere.

All in all, it doesn’t really matter how you celebrate Christmas and enjoy the winter holidays as long as you do. It’s easy to adapt and most important is, in my opinion, to welcome them all with an open heart.

And now you can even make an impression as you know how to say Merry Christmas in Romanian, as well as how to wish somebody A Happy New Year in Romanian!

Calin
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6 thoughts on “How to Say Merry Christmas in Romanian (and Happy New Year)”

  1. Calin, you sound very upbeat and festive for the holidays. Hope you and your family have a wonderful season. Craciun Fericit si un an nou fericit!

    (How’d I do?)

    Reply
  2. Been hitting the vin fiert a little early, have we? Le doresc tuturor Craciun fericit, un an nou fericit si la multi ani!

    – Santa Claus: Mos Craciun – Yep, that’s what I told everyone who wanted a hand-out: “Nu sunt Mos Craciun!” – I’m not Santa Claus!

    Reply
    • Haha, just saw that I wrote “mullet wine” instead of “mulled wine”. Oh, well… these things happen :))

      And nice approach with the “I’m not Santa” thing. Still has to be used, unfortunately.

      Reply
  3. Craciun Fericit si un an nou fericit, C!

    I’ve just found your wonderful blog recently, and it has helped me learn a lot about Romania. Thank you!

    I have this dream of celebrating Christmas in Europe where people really do Christmas (I’m from Thailand, you see.) and now I’m thinking about doing that in Romania. Would it be worth fighting with the cold and snow and everything?

    We don’t have proper winter here and people start shivering at 20c degree so when I read somewhere on the internet that your winter is around 2c or lower degree I couldn’t even imagine how cold would that be. I’ve travelled around quite a bit but the coldest I have ever been was about 9c degree only. How would you dress to get warm and don’t stand out or look like a tourist?

    Happy new year to you and your family! I’m looking forward to your next entry

    Reply
    • Hello Anne,

      Thank you for the nice wishes! Happy New Year!

      Regarding your questions, I have to say that until today, it was uncommonly warm and in many places in Romania (like my city near the Danube), it didn’t snow yet. But there were days with temperatures below 0 degrees Celsius, so definitely cold by your standards (and mine, to be honest). But if you want snow and go to a mountain resort for example, you will have plenty of that and cold weather too.

      Regarding what to wear, you will definitely have to buy dedicated clothes for the occasion, including a solid jacket and winter pants and most likely a hat and scarf to put around your neck. You will have to dress in layers – if it somehow gets too hot, you can take one or more down – for example, when you get inside a restaurant or something, where it is much warmer than inside. Supermarkets for example keep a temperature inside of over 20 degrees, and it’s quite a shock when you get in, wearing tons of clothes 🙂

      You won’t stand out – this is how people dress for the winter and even though you will undoubtedly see some brave ones sporting a thin jacket and sneakers, many others will look like they came from a Polar expedition. Each person feels the cold differently (I overdress, for example, because I don’t like it), so it wouldn’t be a problem. Just make the plans in advance and take the leap. The worst that can happen is you needing a bit more clothes than you anticipated 🙂

      Reply

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