Christmas in Vietnam is just different.
Table of Contents
- Christmas in Vietnam
- How to say Merry Christmas in Vietnamese
- Christmas music
- Santa Claus
- Christmas gift
- Christmas wishes
Christmas in Vietnam
In Western culture, Christmas is a day you and your family gather, celebrate together and open Christmas gifts. It’s a day that when you go outside, the streets are almost empty and most businesses are closed or open with limited hours. I feel like it’s a day that nobody goes out. I guess that’s why stores are busy the days before Christmas as people rush to buy gifts and stock up.
Christmas in Vietnam is different. People don’t have a day off on Christmas. Businesses are still open like usual. People still have to go to work. Kids still have to go to schools. But when the night comes, people celebrate. Streets are full of people. Traffic jams are everywhere. Lights are lit up. It’s the time to go out.
Many streets in Vietnam are filled with mixed-use buildings, which have stores on the ground floor and living space above. Many of them are not really mixed-use buildings, they are people’s houses that have the first floor area turned into a store. When I was younger, on my way to school, I’d see Christmas trees near the front of many stores. While my mom was driving me to school, I’d count how many Christmas trees I saw on the way to school. There was many.
How to say Merry Christmas in Vietnamese
Christmas in Vietnamese is called “Giáng Sinh.” It is also referred to as “Nô en,” which is the Vietnamese pronunciation for “Noel.”
“Nô en” is more common in spoke language than in written language, whereas you will see that “Giáng Sinh” is prevalent in both forms.
Merry means “vui vẻ” in Vietnamese, which is the same for “happy.”
Together, “Merry Christmas” means “Giáng Sinh vui vẻ” in Vietnamese.
What about “Chúc mừng Giáng Sinh”? Does it mean “Merry Christmas? Not really. I’ll explain below.
Don’t Vietnamese people say “Chúc mừng năm mới” for “Happy New Year”? See Tết – Vietnamese New Year for explanation about “Chúc mừng năm mới.”
We sometimes say “Chúc mừng năm mới” for “Happy New Year” but we don’t say “Chúc mừng Giáng Sinh” for “Merry Christmas” unless you mean to congratulate on the birth of Jesus as “chúc mừng” means to congratulate, “sinh” means give birth, given birth or just birth and “giáng” is from “giáng trần” as in descending to earth.
For “Merry Christmas,” we usuall say “Giáng Sinh vui vẻ.” However, you can still give someone Christmas wishes by using “chúc” but it does not replace “Merry Christmas.”
For example:
“Chúc em Giáng Sinh vui vẻ.” (Wish you Merry Christmas)
“Chúc anh một Giáng Sinh an lành và vui vẻ.” (Wish you a safe and merry Christmas)
Now you see a problem if “Chúc mừng Giáng Sinh” were “Merry Christmas” in this example? That would mean that “We wish you a Merry Christmas” means “Chúng tôi chúc bạn một Chúc mừng Giáng Sinh,” which makes no sense.
Christmas music
Music is “nhạc” in Vietnamese. We already know what “Giáng Sinh” means (from above). Together, “nhạc Giáng Sinh” means Christmas music.
Santa Claus
How do you say “Santa Claus” in Vietnamese? We call Santa Claus “ông già Noel” in Vietnamese. Actually, we write “ông già Noel” but we pronounce it as “ông già Nô en.”
Christmas gift
Gift is “quà” in Vietnamese. “Christmas Gift” is “quà Giáng Sinh” in Vietnamese.
Christmas wishes
“Chúc” means to wish someone something. To change it to noun, you just add “lời” to “chúc.” In Vietnamese, “lời chúc” means wish (noun).
“Lời chúc Giáng Sinh” means Christmas wish.
“Những lời chúc Giáng Sinh” means Christmas wishes.
Now there’s a difference in Vietnamese between the wishes that you give others in greeting cards and on special occasions (blessings) versus the wishes you make.
If you want to wish someone something on special occasions or on greeting cards or give someone blessings, wish is “chúc” (verb) or “lời chúc” (noun) in Vietnamese. If you want to make a wish, for example “I wish I had magic,” wish is “ước” (verb) or “điều ước” (noun) in Vietnamese.
Look at the difference in these examples:
Tôi chúc em Giáng Sinh vui vẻ. (I wish you Merry Christmas.)
Tôi ước gì tôi có phép thuật. (I wish I had magic.)
Nếu bạn không biết viết gì thì bạn có thể tham khảo những lời chúc Giáng sinh trên mạng. (If you do not know what to write, you can refer to the Christmas wishes online.)
Bà lão cho tôi ba điều ước. (The old woman gave me three wishes.)