Merry Christmas in Galician
Bo Nadal
Say it like this: boh nah-DAHL
Big letters show the part to say louder.
Quick answer
- In Galician, Merry Christmas is Bo Nadal, said like boh nah-DAHL.
- Happy New Year is Feliz aninovo.
- People say it in Spain (Galicia), Spain (borderlands in Asturias, León and Zamora).
What Bo Nadal means
Word for word it is 'bo' (good) plus 'Nadal' (Christmas). Nadal comes from the Latin word for birth. Galician is closely related to Portuguese, which uses the similar word Natal.
Other ways to say it in Galician
Feliz Nadal
Say it like this: feh-LEETH nah-DAHL
Means 'happy Christmas'. Also widely used.
Happy New Year
Feliz aninovo
Say it like this: feh-LEETH ah-nee-NOH-boh
happy new year, word for word 'happy new-year'
Where people speak Galician
Spain (Galicia)Spain (borderlands in Asturias, León and Zamora)
Galician (galego) belongs to the Indo-European, Romance (closely related to Portuguese) language family.
Say it with Rally on Christmas Eve
On Christmas Eve, Rally the corgi rides the Christmas Train to more than 100 places and teaches kids how to say Merry Christmas at every stop. Practice Galician today, then follow his trip.
Follow Rally on Christmas Eve →Christmas traditions where people speak Galician
- Seafood at Christmas: In Galicia, a region in north-west Spain beside the sea, the favourite Christmas Eve and Christmas Day meal is seafood. Families may eat shellfish, lobster and small crabs, with sweets such as turrón and mazapán.[1]
- The Mass of the Rooster: Many people in Galicia go to Midnight Mass, called the Misa do Galo, the Mass of the Rooster. The name comes from a story that a rooster crowed on the night Jesus was born.[1]
- Gifts on Three Kings Day: Spanish children traditionally get gifts around January 5 and 6, when the Three Kings are said to arrive, and Galician families celebrate it too. A ring-shaped cake called roscón is eaten on Epiphany morning.[1]
🎄 Quick game: Merry Christmas in Galician
Three quick questions for kids. Tap an answer to play.
Say Merry Christmas in more languages
- SerbianСрећан Божић
- GreekΚαλά Χριστούγεννα
- NorwegianGod jul
- AlbanianGëzuar Krishtlindjen
- RussianС Рождеством!
- UkrainianЗ Різдвом!
- BelarusianЗ Калядамі
- SwedishGod jul
Questions parents ask
How do you say Merry Christmas in Galician?
The most common way to say Merry Christmas in Galician is Bo Nadal, pronounced "boh nah-DAHL". Galicians say it in person, in messages and on cards. Feliz Nadal is also widely used, so children may hear both and can use either one.[2]
How do you pronounce Merry Christmas in Galician?
Say it like this: boh nah-DAHL. The capital letters show the stressed syllable, so say that part a little louder and longer. Galician stresses the last syllable of Nadal. The d between vowels is soft, and the final l is clear. In Feliz, the z can sound like the th in think in Galician, so say feh-LEETH if you use that form.
What does Merry Christmas mean word for word in Galician?
Word for word it is 'bo' (good) plus 'Nadal' (Christmas). Nadal comes from the Latin word for birth. Galician is closely related to Portuguese, which uses the similar word Natal for Christmas, so many Christmas words feel familiar to speakers of both languages.[2]
How do you write Merry Christmas in Galician?
Write it as Bo Nadal. Galician uses the Latin alphabet with the letter ñ, as in viño, and accent marks on some words, such as mañá. Capitalise Nadal as the holiday name, and keep bo in lowercase when it is not the first word of a sentence.
How do you say Happy New Year in Galician?
Happy New Year in Galician is Feliz aninovo, pronounced "feh-LEETH ah-nee-NOH-boh". It means happy new year, word for word 'happy new-year'. The word aninovo joins ano (year) and novo (new). Galicians may also hear the Portuguese form Feliz Ano Novo.[3]
Is there a formal and a casual way to say Merry Christmas in Galician?
Bo Nadal is traditional, warm and polite for everyone, from friends to teachers. Feliz Nadal is also fully correct. There is no strict formal and casual split, so children can use either one with grandparents and classmates alike.[2]
When do people say Merry Christmas in Galician?
Galicians say it in December, on cards and at school, and above all on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. They often add the new year wish in the same sentence as they say goodbye at the end of December.[1]
Which day is the main Christmas celebration for Galician speakers: Christmas Eve or Christmas Day?
In Galicia, Christmas Eve is called Noiteboa. Most families eat their main Christmas meal on Christmas Eve, December 24, and some go to Midnight Mass. Christmas Day, December 25, is a public holiday, and children get gifts again on January 6 from the Three Kings.[1]
What do people eat at Christmas in Galicia?
In Galicia, a region in north-west Spain beside the sea, the favourite Christmas Eve and Christmas Day meal is seafood. Families may eat shellfish, lobster and small crabs, with sweets such as turrón and mazapán. Seafood is such a big part of the meal that many Galician families order it well before Christmas.[1]
How can I teach Merry Christmas in Galician to kids?
Teach Bo Nadal by comparing it with Spanish and Portuguese. Show that bo means good and Nadal sounds like Natal. Then act out a seafood dinner with toy shells and say the greeting before eating. It makes a small, memorable game.
A bedtime story after seeing SantaRally Takes the Train is a five-minute rhyming picture book about a corgi’s first train ride, hand-painted in real watercolor by Leslie Dunn. $16.99 on Amazon, ages 0 to 8.
Buy on AmazonSources
We check every greeting against dictionaries, language institutes and cultural sources.
- Christmas in Spain, WhyChristmas.com
- Merry Christmas (translations), Wiktionary
- Happy New Year (translations), Wiktionary