feliz Navidad
/feˌliθ nabiˈdad/
feliz Navidad is the Spanish way to say merry Christmas.
This phrase is used to express good wishes during the Christmas season. You might also use a longer sentiment such as Que tengas una Navidad llena de amor y felicidad to say "May you have a Christmas full of love and happiness".
Meaning: good wishes at Christmas time (phrase)
How do you pronounce it?
/feˌliθ nabiˈdad/
Did you know?
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, the main celebration happens on the night of December 24, when people exchange gifts and eat a large meal called Nochebuena, rather than on Christmas Day.
- The word 'Navidad' shares a common ancestor with the English word 'native', as both stem from the Latin root for 'being born'.
- In some Latin American traditions, instead of focusing only on 'Feliz Navidad', people may celebrate with 'Posadas' leading up to the day, which are processions reenacting the search for shelter.
Examples in context
- ¡Feliz Navidad a todos!Merry Christmas, everybody!This sentence is useful for greeting a group of people with feliz Navidad.Tatoeba #9488910 by hayastan, translation #6556054 by BHO
- ¡Feliz Navidad, amor mío!Merry Christmas, my love!This sentence is useful for wishing feliz Navidad to a romantic partner.Tatoeba #1320484 by Shishir, translation #1320234 by Eldad
- Te deseo una feliz Navidad.I wish you a Merry Christmas.This sentence is useful for expressing a wish for someone to have a feliz Navidad.Tatoeba #1508223 by marcelostockle, translation #62819 by lilygilder
- Estimado Señor García, le deseo una Feliz Navidad y un próspero Año Nuevo.Dear Mr. García, I wish you a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year.
- 10 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Elena and Alejandro meet at a Christmas party.
- Elena¡Hola, Alejandro! ¡Feliz Navidad!Hi, Alejandro! Merry Christmas!
- Alejandro¡Gracias, Elena! Igualmente para ti.Thanks, Elena! Same to you.
- Elena¿Cómo va tu familia?How is your family?
- AlejandroMuy bien, gracias por preguntar.Very well, thanks for asking.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “merry Christmas” translations and entries feliz Navidad, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries Navidad, feliz, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
