Ever Wondered Why We Say Merry Christmas’ Instead Of Happy Christmas? Let’s Dive In

The year-ending festivity is about to kick start with Christmas Eve. Christmas is celebrated to commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ. It is one of the biggest festivals for Christian followers around the world. On this day people greet each other with a phrase that goes like- ‘Merry Christmas’ not ‘Happy Christmas’. Have you ever wondered what could be the reason behind this change in phrase? Let’s dig in to know more about it.

We often tend to use the phrase ‘Happy’ for almost all the festivals, anniversaries, birthdays and new years. Merry Christmas has a more emotional and unrestrained connotation of celebration whereas ‘Happy Christmas’ signifies a conservative and reserved celebration.

Queen Elizabeth Used ‘Happy Christmas’

Queen Elizabeth II used the phrase ‘Happy Christmas’ (who is santa claus) while addressing the people of the United Kingdom every year. This is because the term ‘Merry’ is associated with a sense of intoxication and boisterousness. However, some people say that the word ‘merry’ is related to the ‘rowdiness' of the underprivileged classes while the term ‘happy’ is related to a higher class connotation.

Historical Reasons

Various historians believe that earlier church leaders in Great Britain used to encourage Christian people to use the word ‘Happy’ not ‘Merry’. The reason is based on the meaning of the word, happy signifies an emotion while merry is a behaviour.

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Cultural And Literary Reasons

Earlier in the 16th century, the phrase ‘We Wish You A Merry Christmas’ (ways to celebrate christmas with friends) was mentioned in the Charles Dickens novel ‘A Christmas Carol’ in the year 1843. This is one of the major reasons for the popularity of the word since then. However, in the same year, the phrase started to show up in the commercial Christmas cards. The phrase ‘Merry Christmas’ is mostly used in the United States of America while ‘Happy Christmas’ is popularly used in the United Kingdom.

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