Learning how to say happy birthday in different languages is one of the easiest ways to begin your journey of becoming a polyglot. Birthdays are important to people all over the world. They are often marked as a celebration of life, how far we’ve come from when we were born, and to some extent, the things we have achieved. People celebrate people on their birthdays to express love, appreciation, and to wish the celebrants well for the future. For them, it is another milestone in age and a way of showing the celebrants they matter.
While we are in no position to decide if birthdays are worth celebrating or not, some people think they are overrated and undeserving of the value people attach to them. Those who believe birthdays aren’t special have held on to this sentiment because they can’t fathom how the passing of years warrants an occasion for celebration. Be that as it may, even people who don’t believe in birthdays have had to celebrate it with people around them.
How Do You Say Happy Birthday In Spanish?
Counted among the romance languages, that is modern languages that emanated from Vulgar Latin, Spanish is a global language with as many as 500 million native speakers mostly found in Spain and the Americas. Apart from Mandarin, Chinese, Spanish is the world’s most spoken native language and the fourth-most spoken language after English, Mandarin Chinese, and Hindi. If you are living in any of the 21 Spanish-speaking countries, it is inevitable to pick up some words and common phrases of the language, like how to say happy birthday.
There are several ways to say happy birthday in Spanish but the most common is “feliz cumpleaños” which directly translates to “happy birthday”. You can use it to greet any Spanish-speaking friends or acquaintances on their birthday. It can also be personalized by adding the name of the celebrant. For instance, if the person is your romantic partner you can add “mi amor” and say “feliz cumpleaños, mi amor” which means “happy birthday, my love”.
Alternatives To Feliz Cumpleaños Are As Listed Below:
- “Espero que todos tus deseos se cumplan” – I hope all your wishes come true
- “Disfruta tu día” – Enjoy your day
- “Muchas felicidades” – Best wishes
So, you can wish your Spanish-speaking boyfriend/girlfriend a happy birthday with a longer sentence in Spanish thus: “feliz cumpleaños, mi amor. Espero que todos tus deseos se cumplan,” meaning “happy birthday, my love. I hope all your wishes come true.” There are no hard rules for celebrating Spanish birthdays. Just get a gift for the celebrant and blend in at the party if there is one.
How Do You Say Happy Birthday In Italian?
You can’t want to know how to say happy birthday in different languages and ignore Italian. Also a romance language, Italian is the official language of Italy, the Vatican City State, Switzerland, and San Marino. It is a major European language with at least 67 million native speakers and a total of around 85 million speakers scattered across the globe. Known as the language of music, Italian is the second most widely spoken native language in the European Union and it has been estimated that over 200,000 foreign students study the language every year. If you have hopes of learning the language, you should begin with how to say happy birthday.
As it is with practically any other language, there are several ways to say happy birthday in Italian but the most common is “buon compleanno” which directly translates to “happy birthday” and literally to “good birthday” as “buon” means “good” and “compleanno” means “birthday”. You can use endearment words and terms like “my friend”, “dear” or the celebrant’s name to personalize it as exemplified below:
- Boun compleanno presidente Sergio Mattarella – Happy birthday president Sergio Mattarella
- Boun compleanno cara – Happy birthday dear
- Boun compleanno amico mio – Happy birthday my friend (for male)
- Boun compleanno amica mia – Happy birthday my friend (for female)
- Boun compleanno, amore mio – Happy birthday, my love.
Other Ways To Express Your Birthday Wishes To Your Italian-Speaking Friend, Colleague, Romantic Partner, or Whatever Are As Follows:
- Tanti Auguri: In a strict sense, the phrase translates to “many wishes” but the context expresses its meaning and intent.
- Tanti auguri in ritardo: Literally means “happy birthday late” but what you would be saying is “happy belated birthday”
- Cento di questi giorni: Word for word, it says “one-hundred of these days” but you would essentially be wishing the celebrant 100 years of birthdays.
How To Say Happy Birthday In French
Getting to know how to say happy birthday in French is probably the best thing about learning how to say happy birthday in different languages. French, like the first two languages, is also a romance language. No one should be told it is one of the most popular languages in the world. The official language of France and 28 other nations of the world, French is one of the six official languages of the United Nations with about 76 million native speakers and as many as 235 million fluent speakers all over the world. It has been estimated that about 650 million people would be speaking the language by 2050.
There are many ways to wish someone a happy birthday in French but the most common ones are “joyeux anniversaire” and “bon anniversaire”. Joyeux Anniversaire directly translates to “happy birthday” as “Joyeux” means “Joyful” and “Anniversaire” means “Birthday”. “Bon” means “good”, so you can use either “joyeux anniversaire” or “bon anniversaire” to express your wishes to any French-speaking celebrant. Of course, you can also personalize it as shown below:
- Joyeux anniversaire/bon anniversaire mon amour – Happy birthday my love
- Joyeux anniversaire/bon anniversaire mon ami – Happy birthday my friend
- Joyeux anniversaire/bon anniversaire chérie – Happy birthday dear
- Joyeux anniversaire/bon anniversaire mon doux mari – Happy birthday my sweet husband
- Joyeux anniversaire/bon anniversaire ma femme la plus chère – Happy birthday my dearest wife.
In Addition To The Above, Other Ways To Say Happy Birthday in French Include The Following:
- Que cette nouvelle année t’apporte plein de bonheur – May this new year bring you lots of happiness
- Bonne fête – Happy birthday
- Meilleurs vœux – Best wishes
- Je vous souhaite plein de bonheur en cette journée spéciale – I wish you lots of happiness on this special day
- Que vous puissiez être heureux – May you be happy
- Encore de nombreuses années – Literally means “still many years” but you’d be saying “wish you many more years”.
How To Say Happy Birthday In Japanese
Thanks to the globalization of culture and communication through the internet, learning how to say happy birthday in different languages, including Japanese, is easy as pie. Spoken by as many as 128 million people, most of whom are in Japan, this East Asian language has no plural form for words and is one of the most unique languages in the world as it has no genetic relation to any other language.
Like the rest of the languages, you can wish someone a happy birthday in Japanese in various ways but the most common are “Otanjoubi omedetou” and “Otanjoubi omedetou gozaimasu”. While the former is a casual way to say it and it literally means “congratulations on your birthday”, the latter is formal but essentially says the same thing.
Other Ways To Say Happy Birthday in Japanese Includes the Following:
- Happi Baasudee – This is like saying “Japanified” pronunciation for the English phrase.
- Subarashii ichinen ni narimasu you ni – I hope it’s a wonderful year for you.
- Anata no negai ga subete kanaimasu yō ni – May your wishes come true.
How Do You Say Happy Birthday In German?
English is the most widely spoken Germanic language, followed by German which is mainly spoken in Central Europe; in countries like Switzerland, Austria, and of course, Germany. It is also a national language in Namibia, a Southern African nation, and a co-official language in countries like Belgium and Luxembourg. In all, about 42 countries of the world have people who speak German as their mother tongue, and it amounts to as many as 155 million people. It is the 11th most-spoken language in the world.
Given that, anyone curious about how to say happy birthday in different languages is inevitably asking for how to say happy birthday in German. You should know that it can be offensive to wish a German happy birthday before their actual birthday. This is so because it is considered bad luck. The sentiment around this boils down to an axiom that says: “du sollst den tag nicht vor dem abend loben” which means “you shouldn’t praise the day before its evening”. Essentially, it is believed that if you express that things can’t go wrong as though you call the shots, they would ultimately go wrong to put you in your place.
To wish someone happy birthday in German, just say “Alles Gute zum Geburtstag” or “Herzlichen Glückwunsch zum Geburtstag”. Other alternatives are listed below:
- Nachträglich alles Gute zum Geburtstag – Happy belated birthday
- Alles das Beste zum Geburtstag – All the best for your birthday
- Viel Glück zum Geburtstag – Best of luck on your birthday
- Auf dass Ihr Tag mit Liebe und Freude erfüllt ist – May your day be filled with love and joy.
How Do You Say Happy Birthday In Hawaiian?
Hawaiian was once an endangered language but there has been a gradual increase of people who speak the language since the late 1940s, even though it is still classified as one of the critically endangered languages by UNESCO. The Polynesian language currently has about 1,000 native speakers and just about 8000 people who are fluent in the language. The number is a joke compared to the estimated 800,000 people who were native speakers during the time of James Cook, the British explorer.
Based on the foregoing, it is unlikely that anyone looking for how to say happy birthday in different languages had Hawaiian in mind. But since you are here, and in the interest of nursing a dying language back to life, the common way to wish your Hawaiian-speaking friends or acquaintances happy birthday is “Hauʻoli Lā Hānau”. It directly translates to happy birthday as “Hauʻoli” means “happy”, “Lā” means “day”, and “Hānau” means “born”.
Alternatively, you could say “Hauʻoli Lā Piha Makahiki” which directly translates to “happy new year” but in the context of the occasion, you would be essentially congratulating the celebrant for entering into another year of his/her life. You can also personalize your birthday wishes as exemplified below:
- Hauʻoli lā hānau, e kuʻu aloha – Happy birthday, my love.
- Hauʻoli lā hānau, e kuʻu hoa – Happy birthday, my friend.
- Hauʻoli lā hānau, e kuʻu kāne aloha – Happy birthday, my sweet husband.
- Hauʻoli lā hānau e kaʻu wahine aloha – Happy birthday, my sweet wife.
How Do You Say Happy Birthday In Korean?
Like Japanese, Korean is also an East Asian language; the official and national language of both South Korea and North Korea. Majorly classified as a language isolate, Korean is also spoken in parts of China, Sakhalin, the largest island of Russia, and in Central Asia. It is estimated that there are about 82 million Korean speakers in the world, of whom at least 48 million live in South Korea and about 24 million in North Korea.
In all, it is a language big enough to gain the attention of anyone looking to learn how to say happy birthday in different languages. You can express your happy birthday wishes to Korean-speaking celebrants in various ways but the most common ways to do so are listed below:
- Saeng il chuk ha ham ni da: This is appropriate for someone you are not very close with, or someone older than you.
- Saeng il chuk ha hae: This is the most appropriate way to say happy birthday in Korean to friends and family members.
- Saeng il chuk ha deu ryeo yo: This is formal and should be used when it’s important to accord respect to the celebrant.
How Do You Say Happy Birthday In Russian?
The Russian language is native to Russia and the official language of Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Belarus. It is also a common language in the Baltic states, Ukraine, the Caucasus, and Central Asia. Russian is the most spoken native language in Europe as well as the most-spoken Slavic language. With as many as 258 million speakers spread across the globe, it is the eighth-most spoken language on earth. So, it is unthinkable that one would want to learn how to say happy birthday in different languages and choose to ignore Russian.
You can say happy birthday in Russian in various ways but the most common way is “С днем рождения”. It is a casual and informal way of expressing your birthday wishes to any Russian-speaking celebrant. Alternatively, you could say “Поздравляю с днём рождения” which translates to “I congratulate you on your birthday”. Of course, you could as well personalize your wishes as shown below:
- С днем рождения, мой друг – Happy birthday, my friend.
- С днем рождения, любовь моя – Happy birthday, my love.
- Пусть ваш день рождения будет наполнен смехом – May your birthday be filled with laughter.
50 Other Ways To Say Happy Birthday In Different Languages
It is estimated that there are about 7,117 known languages currently spoken across the world. While that number seems to be massive, there is a great concern regarding the rate at which languages are going extinct. Of the quoted number, it is said that 90 percent are spoken by less than 100,000 people and, more than 573 languages have gone extinct.
The following are other ways to say happy birthday in different languages other than the ones discussed in detail above:
- Afrikaana – Gelukkige verjaarsdag
- Arabic – eid mwalid saeid (عيد مولد سعيد)
- Bangla – Śubha janmadina (শুভ জন্মদিন)
- Bosnian – Sretan rođendan
- Bulgarian – Честит Рожден ден (Chestit Rozhden den)
- Catalan – Feliç aniversari
- Chinese – Shēngrì kuàilè (生日快樂)
- Czech – Všechno nejlepší k narozeninám
- Danish – Tillykke med fødselsdagen
- Dutch – Gefeliciteerd
- Filipino – Maligayang kaarawan
- Georgian – Გilotsav dabadebis dghes (Გილოცავ დაბადების დღეს)
- Greek – Charoúmena genéthlia (Χαρούμενα γενέθλια)
- Hebrew – יום הולדת שמח
- Hindi – janmadin mubaarak (जन्मदिन मुबारक)
- Hungarian – Boldog születésnapot
- Icelandic – Til hamingju með afmælið
- Igbo – ezi ncheta ọmụmụ gi
- Indonesian – Selamat ulang tahun
- Irish – Lá breithe shona duit
- Kannada – Huṭṭuhabbada śubhāśayagaḷu (ಹುಟ್ಟುಹಬ್ಬದ ಶುಭಾಶಯಗಳು)
- Kazakh – Twılğan küniñmen (Туылған күніңмен)
- Lao – suk san van koed (ສຸກສັນວັນເກີດ)
- Latin – Felix natalis
- Lithuanian – Su gimtadieniu
- Macedonian – Sreḱen rodenden (Среќен роденден)
- Malay – Selamat Hari lahir
- Mongolian – Törsön ödriin mend (Төрсөн өдрийн мэнд)
- Nepali – Janmadinakō śubhakāmanā (जन्मदिनको शुभकामना)
- Norwegian – Gratulerer med dagen
- Polish – Wszystkiego najlepszego z okazji urodzin
- Portuguese – Feliz aniversário
- Punjabi – Janamadina mubāraka (ਜਨਮਦਿਨ ਮੁਬਾਰਕ)
- Romanian – La multi ani
- Samoan – manuia le aso fanau
- Serbian – Srećan rođendan (Срећан рођендан)
- Slovak – Šťastné narodeniny
- Somali – Dhalasho Wacan
- Sundanese – Wilujeung tepang taun
- Swahili – Heri ya Siku ya Kuzaliwa
- Swedish – Grattis på födelsedagen
- Tamil – Piṟantanāḷ vāḻttukkaḷ (பிறந்தநாள் வாழ்த்துக்கள்)
- Telugu – Puṭṭinarōju śubhākāṅkṣalu (పుట్టినరోజు శుభాకాంక్షలు)
- Thai – S̄uk̄hs̄ạnt̒ wạn keid (สุขสันต์วันเกิด)
- Turkish – Doğum günün kutlu olsun
- Ukrainian – Z Dnem narodzhennya (З Днем народження)
- Vietnamese – Chúc mừng sinh nhật
- Xhosa – Usuku lokuzalwa olumnandi
- Yoruba – O ku ojo ibi
- Zulu – Usuku olumnandi lokuzalwa
3 Unique Ways To Celebrate The Birthday of Someone Special
It hardly matters if you believe in birthdays or not, once you have someone special – family member, spouse, friend, or colleague – who’s about to attain another milestone in age, you would be naturally compelled to do something that would make him/her feel valued and loved. Sometimes, getting a gift for the person or planning a surprise party doesn’t just cut it as you probably have done that before.
There are other ways to appreciate people on their birthday, you only have to think out of the box to know what to do. Someone who is environmentally conscious would appreciate little gestures like devoting your time to planting trees on their birthday. Or donating to any of the environmental charities they support in their name. Other unique ways to celebrate the birthday of someone special include the following:
Give Him/Her a Gift of Time
The gift of time is hard to come by and would be appreciated by any adult saddled with so many responsibilities. If the celebrant is your spouse, make them take a break from their responsibilities for a day or two. Let him/her do whatever they please with the time off and ensure you don’t bother them while they are at it. Also, ensure that the things they are supposed to do are taken care of. They shouldn’t return from the break and meet it waiting for them.
You can also give the gift of time to your colleague and friend. Respectively, you could offer to do their job for a day if it is a possibility, or babysit their kids for a night for them to do whatever they want with the time that avails.
Celebrate The Person With a Gift of Experience
Unlike material gifts that ultimately last for a few years and are forgotten, experiential gifts can last a lifetime and the reason for this isn’t far-fetched. Experience gifts create the room for one to have a unique experience and make memories that one would probably cherish for the rest of their life.
Compared to material gifts, getting the right experience gift for the celebrant might seem to be a difficult task, but that’s probably because you are not considering your options from the right perspective. Think of the person’s personality and the things they like. For instance, if s/he is someone who has a thing for horror movies and everything paranormal, you should consider booking a ticket for him/her to take part in a paranormal tour.
Gift Them The Spa Treatment
We don’t take care of our body as much as we should; this is because we have so many things calling for our attention: our jobs, family, and other engagements. But then, our busy schedule should never warrant the negligence of our mental and physical well-being.
For many, getting a spa treatment is simply a luxury they can’t afford. If you suspect this is the case for the celebrant, you should consider sponsoring a spa treatment for him/her. It’s no secret that a good spa treatment can yield many benefits that range from relieving stress and muscle pains to increasing the quality of sleep, reducing anxiety, lowering blood pressure, detoxification, and what have you.
It would amount to a thoughtful experience gift that wouldn’t only make the celebrant feel good but also inspire a deliberate effort to take care of their well-being going forward. It’s what you might consider a lifetime gift.
