Just before Christmas and on Christmas Day, people say ' Merry Christmas' to other people to express the hope that they will have a happy time. [formulae]
The expression to “Be or make merry” translates to make joy or be joyful. It generally is used to express good cheer and being in a state of content. When people use “Merry Christmas” they are expressing their desire for the other person to be joyful and have a wonderful holiday season.
In Old English, it was Cristes mæsse, or "Christ mass." It's been written as a single word since the fourteenth century. Definitions of Christmas. noun. a Christian holiday celebrating the birth of Christ; a quarter day in England, Wales, and Ireland. synonyms: Christmas Day, Dec 25, Xmas.
What is the difference between Merry Christmas and Happy Christmas?
For those of a more puritanical mindset, merry suggested frivolous revelry involving beer, mulled wine, or other spirits, while happy inspired a feeling of peace, contentment, and devout bliss. While Moore called Christmas happy, Charles Dickens preferred merry in "A Christmas Carol" (1843).
What is the True Meaning of Christmas | The Truth about Christmas
Do British people say "merry" or "Happy Christmas"?
Brits say "Happy Christmas" instead of "Merry Christmas."
You might remember a scene from the first "Harry Potter" movie in which Ron says, "Happy Christmas, Harry!" While this may sound strange to an American, saying "Happy Christmas" is commonplace in the UK, as opposed to "Merry Christmas."
The preeminence of the "Merry Christmas" phrasing (in the U.S., at least) was solidified by its use in Dickens' A Christmas Carol . However, it probably also stuck around when "happy" prevailed elsewhere because Christmas is, more than any other major holiday, a day associated with being merry.
The date of the birth of Jesus is not stated in the gospels or in any historical sources and the evidence is too incomplete to allow for consistent dating. However, most biblical scholars and ancient historians believe that his birth date is around 6 to 4 BC.
Welcome Christmas. On December 25, Christians around the world celebrate the birth of Christ. The origins of the holiday are uncertain; by the year 336, however, the Christian church in Rome observed the Feast of the Nativity on December 25.
Later in 529 AD, Pope Julius I declared Happy Christmas Day a civic holiday and announced the date of December 25th to be the date to celebrate Jesus Christ's birth. However, there are many different traditions and arguments towards the background of 25 December Christmas Day.
One more thought — while it's OK to say Merry Christmas at work, it's definitely not OK to insist that others say it back to you. You can't force someone to participate in your holiday.
The first known use of the phrase 'mery Christmas' was thought to be in a letter from Bishop Fisher of Rochester to Thomas Cromwell in 1534: “And this our Lord God send you a mery Christmas.”
No one knows for sure why Merry Christmas became the more popular greeting in the United States. Some Christians believe it is a more fitting greeting, given the unrestrained and emotional response followers should have to a celebration of the birth of their Savior, Jesus Christ.
There are different hypotheses regarding the date of Jesus's birth. In the early fourth century, the church fixed the date as December 25, the date of the winter solstice in the Roman Empire. It is nine months after Annunciation on March 25, also the Roman date of the spring equinox.
The idea that Christmas is restricted to only Christians is false. Yes, there is a Christian significance to it but it is a celebration of God's gift to the world.
Just before Christmas and on Christmas Day, people say ' Merry Christmas' to other people to express the hope that they will have a happy time. [formulae]
Why does the US say "Merry Christmas" instead of "Happy Christmas"?
So when did "Happy Christmas" become "Merry Christmas" in the U.S.? Historians believe it might boil down to a simple grammatical lesson. "Happy" is a word that describes an inner emotional condition, while "merry" is more of a behavior descriptor—something active and maybe even raucous.
According to Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (19th edn, 2012), Father Christmas is considered to be "[a] British rather than a US name for Santa Claus, associating him specifically with Christmas.
Over four in five Australians (85%) prefer the traditional greeting of “Merry Christmas” compared to more neutral salutations like “Season's Greetings” (8%) and “Happy Holidays” (7%).
Was Jesus actually born in June? The exact birthday of Jesus is not known and doesn't appear in the Christian Bible, but it is estimated that Jesus was born between 6 and 4 B.C., due to the Biblical story of King Herod the Great's reign, which coincides with the birth of Christ.
While Muslims honor Jesus as a prophet, they do not celebrate Christmas. Instead, they observe Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, holidays centered on charity, family, and community. Promoting interfaith dialogue and cultural understanding is essential for fostering mutual respect and peaceful coexistence.
