Greek Vocabulary Words for Christmas

Written by Greek Boston in Greek Christmas Traditions, Learn How to Speak Basic Greek Comments Off on Greek Vocabulary Words for Christmas

Greece is a predominantly Christian country, which means that the majority of its citizens celebrate Christmas. This means that leading up to Christmas, the streets are filled with people shopping for Christmas gifts. The country is filled with traditional decorations, and many cities have their own special celebrations and Christmas markets. People bake their traditional cookies and breads, such as melamakarona, a traditional Christmas cookie, and Christopsomo, a sweet Christmas bread.

In order to really learn about Christmas in Greece, it helps to be familiar with the vocabulary. Here are some words that you need to know that are related to this holiday:

Christmas Vocabulary Words in the Greek Language:

Christmas Day is on December 25th in Greece, and the Greeks celebrate what’s known as the “12 Days of Christmas.” Essentially, the celebrations begin on Christmas Day on December 25th and end on January 6th, the day of Epiphany. Here are the important words:

• Χριστούγεννα – christouenna – Christmas
• η παραμονή των Χριστουγέννων – i paramoni ton Christouyennon – Christmas Eve
• Καλά Χριστούγεννα – kala christouenna – Merry Christmas
• η Χριστουγεννιάτικη κάρτα – i christouyenniatiki karta – Christmas card
• το Xριστουγεννιάτικο δέντρο – to christouyenniatiko thendro
• τα κάλαντα – to kalanda – Christmas carol
• Σας εύχομαι καλά Χριστούγεννα – Sas efkoma kala christouenna –  I wish you Merry Christmas
• Χρόνια πολλά – chronia polla – This phrase is difficult to translate. You say it when you wish someone many years of good health. It is said on someone’s birthday, name day, major holidays, etc. It is definitely said on Christmas.
• Καλές γιορτές – kales yortes – Literally translated, it means “Good Holidays”. It is used the same way we use, “Happy Holidays.”
• Καλή Χρονιά – Kali Chronia – Happy New Year
• Καλή Πρωτοχρονιά – Kali protochronia – Happy New Year’s Eve
• Ευτυχισμένο το Νέο Έτος – Eftihsmeno to neo etos – Happy New Year (formal version)
• η παραμονή της Πρωτοχρονιάς – I paramoni paramoni protohronias
• Ημέρα των Χριστουγέννων – Imera ton Christouyennon – Christmas Day
• φάτνη του Χριστού – fatin tou Christou – the Manger of Christ
• Άγιος Βασίλης – Ayios Vasilis – Saint Basil, Also known as the Greek Santa Claus
• χριστουγεννιάτικα κάλαντα – christouyenniatika kalanda – Christmas carols
• τα κάλαντα – to kalanda – the carols
• το χριστουγεννιάτικο δέντρο – Christouyenniatiko thendro – Christmas tree

Christmas is an important holiday in Greece. It is not inly a religious holiday, bit it is also a time for families to come together and enjoy some great memories. Read over this list a few times so you can become familiar with all the words and try to use them whenever you can in order to practice it.

The Learn Greek section on GreekBoston.com was written by Greeks to help people understand the conversational basics of the Greek language. This article is not a substitute for a professional Greek learning program, but a helpful resource for people wanting to learn simple communication in Greek.

Categorized in: Greek Christmas Traditions, Learn How to Speak Basic Greek

This post was written by Greek Boston