с праздником
s prázdnikom[ˈs‿prazʲnʲɪkəm]
The Russian phrase for "happy holiday" is с праздником (s prázdnikom).
с праздником is a general greeting used to wish someone well during a celebration. For more specific wishes, you might say Поздравляю с праздником!, which means "Congratulations on the holiday!" If the holiday has not yet arrived, you can use С наступающим праздником! to wish someone a happy upcoming holiday. For a New Year celebration, the traditional greeting is С Новым годом!
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase с праздником literally translates to "with the holiday".
How do you pronounce it?
s prázdnikom
Did you know?
- The word праздник shares a deep linguistic root with the word for 'idle' or 'empty'. Historically, a holiday was seen as a time when the usual work and obligations were 'empty' or absent.
- Because с праздником literally translates to 'with the holiday', it sounds as though you are physically accompanying the holiday itself. This reflects a Russian linguistic tendency to use the preposition 'with' instead of the English 'happy' to express well-wishes.
- In Russia, the greeting С наступающим! is often used as a shorthand for С наступающим праздником!, meaning 'With the incoming [holiday]!' It is common to say this days or even weeks before the actual date.
Examples in context
- С праздником Рождества!Happy Christmas!
- Поздравляю с Днем Победы!Congratulations on Victory Day!
- Удачного 8 марта!Have a great International Women's Day!
- С праздником вас!S prazdnikom vas!Happy holiday to you!
- Поздравляю, с праздником!Pozdravlyayu, s prazdnikom!Congratulations, happy holiday!
- Друзья, с праздником!Druzyya, s prazdnikom!Friends, happy holiday!
Example conversation
Maria and Sergey meet at a cafe during a public holiday.
- Мария MariaПривет, Сергей! С праздником!Privet, Sergey! S prazdnikom!Hi, Sergey! Happy holiday!
- Сергей SergeyПривет, Мария! И тебя с праздником!Privet, Mariya! I tebya s prazdnikom!Hi, Maria! Happy holiday to you too!
- Мария MariaКак ты планируешь праздновать?Kak ty planiruyesh' prazdnovat'?How do you plan to celebrate?
- Сергей SergeyЯ иду в ресторан с семьёй.Ya idu v restoran s sem'yoy.I am going to a restaurant with my family.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry с праздником, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
