How Do You Say MERRY CHRISTMAS in Sinhala?

“’Twas a few nights before Christmas, and the only sound in the house,
Was of Dilshan typing on his keyboard, and left-clicking the mouse.
He was writing his Tribesters a Christmas post, ’twas now ready to be seen,
So he posted it as he smiled & said “What a cool tribe they’ve been.”

Apologies to Mr. Clement Clarke Moore for taking his beautiful poem and contaminating it with my words but I couldn’t help it. I’m feeling happy, poetic, and grateful these days.

In short, I’m feeling very “Christmassy”…

However, nothing to be alarmed about folks, I get like this every year. Starting from early December, I get into the festive mood by loading my iPod with all types of Christmas albums from Nat King Cole to the more recent Michael Bublé. I start seeing the good in everything around me and I start to feel very thankful (must be due to the sugar from the Christmas cakes and cookies that find their way to my house).

But don’t worry, I’ll get back to my usual grumpy crotchety state as soon as January shows up, I promise.

In the meantime, many thanks to two of my readers, Laura and Giulia (and of course Giulia’s 2-year old daughter, one of the youngest Sinhala learners of the LBSS family) for giving me their suggestions for this post.

Let’s start.

1. Christmas Related Sinhala Words

The Word For CHRISTMAS In Sinhala

Notes:

¹ You might hear some people refer to Christmas in Sinhala as ‘nath∙thal’ but I would argue that this actually is the adjective form of the word Christmas (like when we say “Christmas day”, “Christmas tree”, “Christmas party”, etc.). In English, we don’t make such a distinction. Therefore, my recommendation is ‘nath∙thȧl∙lȧ’.

(I know that “Tis the season for love and peace” but rest assured, I will fight you on the above point…)

Common Christmas Related Sinhala Words

Notes:

² ‘nath∙thal dha∙vȧ∙sȧ∙tȧ’ = “to Christmas day”; ‘is∙sȧ∙rin∙dhaa’ = “previous day” so this just means “The previous day to Christmas day”. There isn’t really a specific term in Sinhala for “Christmas eve” (as far as I know).

³ You can interchange the word ‘ga∙ha’ with ‘ga∙sȧ’; it means the same thing. It’s just that ‘ga∙sȧ’ is used more when writing.

⁴ It is quite typical to replace the word ‘uth∙sȧ∙vȧ∙yȧ’ with ‘paa∙ti∙yȧ’. Just by the sound of it you can guess that this word comes from the English word “party”. Feel free to use either one.

Santa Claus Related Sinhala Words

Notes:

⁵ You’ll remember from the post Members of the Family in Sinhala, that ‘see∙ya’ meant “grandfather”.

Christianity Related Sinhala Words

Notes:

⁶ ‘aa∙gȧ∙mȧ’ = “religion”

⁷ The best way I can translate the word ‘va∙han∙sé’ would be “lord” or “reverend”. Also note that like in English how one might say “Jesus”, in Sinhala we could say ‘jḗ∙su’.

2. Christmas Wishes in Sinhala

Wishing Someone MERRY CHRISTMAS in Sinhala

Notes:

¹⁰ This is a familiar way of wishing someone you know

BONUS: Christmas Flashcards

Effortlessly Recap All The New Words You Learned:

There are 23 Flash Cards in this set.
The cards are in no particular order. To shuffle the cards, refresh this page.

As usual, leave your questions & comments below and I’ll get back to you even if I’m already in holiday mode. But when you do, remember to check the ‘Notify’ box, ok?

And that’s it, folks! Hope you liked it. I’ll wrap up this post by simply wishing each and everyone of you:

“Happy Holidays!”

PS. Don’t forget to tell me how you plan to spend it this year. Ciao for now.