The holidays are just around the corner and you might be wondering how to say Merry Christmas in Croatian. Or maybe how to say “Happy New Year” or use some other winter-related greetings and words in Croatian to impress your friends or soul mate.
I am here to help you with all that and I will tell you both how to say Merry Christmas in Croatian, as well as how to wish somebody a Happy New Year in the Croatian language.
This will be a quick one in which you will learn a few winter holiday-related greetings in the Croatian language.
The words might seem a bit difficult to say if you haven’t spoken any Croatian before, but if you’re only planning to write them, you’ll have absolutely no problem.
In the end, it’s the intention that matters and I am sure that your friends or that Croatian woman you fell in love with will indeed be impressed even if you don’t get the pronunciation right.
In the end, it’s not like a lot of people in the world speak the language (or try to) so simply trying is really appreciated – I came to this conclusion based on personal experience.
But let’s not waste any time and let’s check out the main things you need to know how to say during the winter holidays, then a few extras to help you really impress your friends from Croatia.
How to say Merry Christmas in Croatian
You have two ways of saying “Merry Christmas” in Croatian: Sretan Bozic or Cestit Bozic.
The most common is Sretan Bozic. (the first word is easy to pronounce – as written, but the second is something like “bo-jee-ch”).
There is another way of saying Merry Christmas, and some people believe that it is “more” Croatian to do so: Cestit Bozic. But the truth is that any is fine.
I won’t go into debates now regarding which is more “Croat” than the other. Pick any that sounds easier to say – you trying will still be appreciated. Plus, they basically mean the same thing, with a minor variation.
If you want to be more “politically correct” and don’t risk to wish a Merry Christmas to somebody that might not celebrate it, you can say Sretni Blagdani. This basically meas “Happy Holidays” or “Season’s Greetings”.
However, going with any of the first two recommendations is what I suggest you to do: people in Croatia love Christmas and love their Christmas greetings, so keeping it so formal makes no sense.
I haven’t met a single Croatian who doesn’t celebrate Christmas, so chances of meeting one that would be offended if you wished them a Merry Christmas are as close to zero as they can be.
How to say Happy New Year in Croatian
Now, soon after Christmas, you will have to try your Croatian language skills once more with a new set of words.
Fortunately, there are no tongue twisters here, so you should have no trouble making yourself understood. Here’s how to say Happy New Year in Croatian:
Sretna Nova Godina!
If you want to say both (Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year), you just have to combine them and say:
Sretan Bozic i Nova Godina! or Cestit Bozic i sretna Nova Godina!
Other winter-holiday related words in Croatian language
Some other words and phrases related to the holidays will be listed below, but be warned that in some cases you will get a mouthful and probably have a tough time getting them right.
But if you do want to try and impress your Croatian friends, here are some more words that you can say during the cold season:
Christmas tree: Bozicno drvce (yup, 4 consecutive consonants!)
Snow: Snijeg
It’s snowing: Pada snijeg
Christmas: Bozic
Santa Claus: Djed Mraz
Christmas Carols: Bozicne Pjesme
Conclusion
This would be all that I have for you right now in terms of Christmas and Winter Holidays-related words and greetings in the Croatian language.
Did I miss any? Is there anything in particular that you’d like to know how to say? Let me know and I will help you with the translation below.
Thanks for reading and… Sretan Bozic i Nova Godina! (in case you forgot what it means, it’s Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!)