Season's Greetings, Happy Christmas, Merry Christmas, Nollaig Shona Dhuit etc

LordSutch

What will be your choice of greeting this Christmas?

You can see from the link below, things were gettin a bit 'dicey' here back in 2009 when HH might have taken over as the seasonal greeting! what with some Irish people openly beginning to utter the dreaded 'Happy Holidays' in public :cool:

From 2009 >>> http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=63437676&postcount=1

Thankfully since then it looks like the oh so American "Happy Holidays" has been headed off, defeated, & totally rejected in both Ireland & Britain as an alternative form of Christmas greeting. 'Hurrah I hear you cry'

So what's your choice of greeting this Yuletide Season?

See attached Poll.

darkpagandeath

Junkyard Tom

I find it incredibly offensive that religious spookers try to hijack Winter Solstice to push thier superstitions. Winter solstice is an astronomical phenomenon not a celebration of religious fairy tales. Having said that I think Santa is a boss, he brought me some amazing gifts as a child.

Tom Mann Centuria

Happy Christmas or Merry Christmas, both are fine.

Atari Jaguar

I imagine it's not widely used here considering most people in Ireland (up until a short while ago at least) were Christian or atheist. In recent years there's been more muslims and Romas over here but I don't think we'll see ourselves banned from having a Christmas tree put up in Dublin City centre or anything to that extreme. All things considered for Americans at least you could have people who are, Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist etc it makes sense to have a blanket term that can incorporate all religions. A Muslim family can celebrate "the holidays" without feeling a bit stupid calling it Christmas considering the no more believe in Jesus than the man on the moon. Besides if it caught on here and became the norm that instead of "Happy Christmas" it was Happy Holidays I'd refuse to accept the change and carry on with saying Happy/Merry Christmas.

Just don't say Crimbo. Then I fcuking cringo.

darkpagandeath

Atari Jaguar wrote: »

I imagine it's not widely used here considering most people in Ireland (up until a short while ago at least) were Christian or atheist. In recent years there's been more muslims and Romas over here but I don't think we'll see ourselves banned from having a Christmas tree put up in Dublin City centre or anything to that extreme. All things considered for Americans at least you could have people who are, Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist etc it makes sense to have a blanket term that can incorporate all religions. A Muslim family can celebrate "the holidays" without feeling a bit stupid calling it Christmas considering the no more believe in Jesus than the man on the moon. Besides if it caught on here and became the norm that instead of "Happy Christmas" it was Happy Holidays I'd refuse to accept the change and carry on with saying Happy/Merry Christmas.

Just don't say Crimbo. Then I fcuking cringo.

They recognise all prophets . Where do you think Islam comes from ?

Stigura

Deedsie wrote: »

Any Irish person that says Merry Christmas watches too much U.S. television.

It's Happy Christmas this side of the Atlantic.

" We wish you a merry christmas and a happy new year. " Isn't that where it comes from?


I'm the guy who first voted 'other'. I have nothing to do with xmass (Or Chinese new year. Ramma lamma ding dong. Or any other 'religious' bollox)

I'm more closer allied with Junkyard Tom, on this: It's about a natural thing. Seasonal.

That today is to be the shortest day of the year matters, epically, to me. " God "? God can go f**k themselves. I need the light.

TOss Sweep

Deedsie wrote: »

Any Irish person that says Merry Christmas watches too much U.S. television.

It's Happy Christmas this side of the Atlantic.

Oh yeah? Our family had no TV in the 80s growing up but used both Happy and Merry Christmas and in fact have a Santa poster that says Merry Christmas that has been in the family since the 70s. None of our family had ever been to the US in their lifetime up until the 2000s and obviously as I said we had no tv.

Junkyard Tom

Junkyard Tom wrote: »

I find it incredibly offensive that religious spookers try to hijack Winter Solstice to push thier superstitions. Winter solstice is an astrological phenomenon not a celebration of religious fairy tales...

So it's astrology and not some made up stuff?

Barry Badrinath

Merry Baby Jesus Day.

whoopsadoodles

Deedsie wrote: »

Fascinating.

The common seasonal greeting in Ireland and Britain still remains Happy Christmas.

"Merry" over here became synonyms with over indulgence with alcohol among certain sections of society.. The Victorians stopped saying Merry and replaced it with Happy Christmas instead as "Merry" had class dividing meaning.

I'm happy with Happy Christmas anyway :-)

People who say Merry just remind me of people who say Awesome or refer to various things "sucking" if they are not enthused by them. E.g. American Football sucks

.

So what you're saying is.....Merry Christmas is around since pre Victorian times!

Deedsie

Deedsie wrote: »

Any Irish person that says Merry Christmas watches too much U.S. television.

It's Happy Christmas this side of the Atlantic.

I'd say a lot more Irish people have sang along to "Merry Christmas" lyrics by British bands like Slade and Shakin Stevens...

Zubeneschamali

“In the old days, it was not called the Holiday Season; the Christians called it 'Christmas' and went to church; the Jews called it 'Hanukkah' and went to synagogue; the atheists went to parties and drank. People passing each other on the street would say 'Merry Christmas!' or 'Happy Hanukkah!' or (to the atheists) 'Look out for the wall!”

― Dave Barry

Peregrinus

Between the Reformation and the nineteenth century, Christmas wasn't actually a big deal in most of the English-speaking world - it was considered a bit, well, too Catholic. It revived as a significant popular holiday in the mid-nineteenth century in both Britain and the US; some people give credit for this largely to Charles Dickens, who was insanely popular in both countries, and who of course is the author of that revolting morality tale, A Christmas Carol. Prince Albert, who brought German Christmas customs to the UK and made them fashionable, was also involved in the revival of Christmas as a major holiday.

At the time "Merry Christmas" was the standard greeting on both sides of the Atlantic, but almost immediately there was a trend towards "Happy Christmas" in the UK, for the reason Deedsie points out - "merry" was considered too suggestive of shameless alcoholic debauch.

"Happy Christmas" never really took off in the US, and is still rarely heard there. Evidently, "merry" doesn't have the same alcoholic connotations in the US (or, if it does, they don't care). It did take off in Britain, but only to a limited extent. Even in British English, it has always taken second place to "Merry Christmas". So it's not really an Americanism; "Happy Christmas" occurs almost exclusively on this side of the Atlantic, but "Merry Christmas" is found on both sides.

"Happy Christmas" is characteristically Irish, though, in the sense that it has always been much more popular in Ireland than "Merry Christmas". To the extent that Hiberno-English is influenced by British English, it tends to be influenced by middle-class and upper-class varieties of British English, and this is where "Happy Christmas" particularly flourished. "Happy Christmas" was, and I think still is, the dominant greeting in Ireland - the only country in the Anglosphere, so far as I know, where this is true. It's a safe bet that the Santa poster with "Merry Christmas" on it that TOss Sweep's family had in the 1970s came from the UK.

mzungu

A Happy Christmas usually does the trick.

LordSutch

Atari Jaguar wrote: »

Just don't say Crimbo.

Agreed, I hate it too!

Glenster

Urgh, Happy Christmas is so UK.

Get a hold of yourselves people.

Merry FTW!

5rtytry56

Other: "Happy Gob$hite Christmas" - I stole this phrase from a Market in Rathmines.

I say Merry Christmas.

And you can blame Slade.

LordSutch

I suspect Merry was around long before Noddy

Capt'n Midnight

Yuletide Felicitations.

Grandeeod

Junkyard Tom wrote: »

I find it incredibly offensive that religious spookers try to hijack Winter Solstice to push thier superstitions. Winter solstice is an astronomical phenomenon not a celebration of religious fairy tales. Having said that I think Santa is a boss, he brought me some amazing gifts as a child.

I fully believe that you appreciate the irony in your own post.

Zubeneschamali

"Merry" is OK I suppose, not my favourite.

I prefer Gandalf Christmas.

OldGoat

I find that "Howaya" works well enough.

Also, isn't "Merry Christmas" et al a farewell rather than a greeting?

The flying mouse

Merry or Happy Christmas will do me & the same to you all :-)

KERSPLAT!

Happy Baby Cheeses Day

bodice ripper

Satisfactory Saturnalia

LordSutch

Happy Christmas in Polish = Wesołych Świąt

Olishi4

An old friend of mine who has since passed away had a tattoo that was meant to say "Mam and Dad RIP" but when he was out once, someone translated it and told him that it really said "Happy Holidays".

He was joking with me and said "not even Happy Christmas ffs, Happy Fcuking Holidays?"

whoopsadoodles

KERSPLAT! wrote: »

Happy Baby Cheeses Day

And they allll came to see the baby cheeses.

KERSPLAT!

whoopsadoodles wrote: »

And they allll came to see the baby cheeses.

http://s4.b3ta.com/host/creative/78125/1414189810/BabyCheezus.jpg