“Merry Christmas” in Japanese and 62 Other Holiday Phrases

サンタクロース （さんたくろーす）
Santa Claus

No one’s leaving out milk and cookies for Old Saint Nick. It’s more common to see people dressing up as him for Christmas parties. Santa also appears on most holiday merchandise and promotional material.

マスコット （ますこっと）
mascot

Instead of Santa Claus, a prefecture’s mascot is the one that gears up in holiday swagger and visits everyone!

Christmas Sight-seeing

Christmas is a great time to visit Japan because of the many holiday-themed attractions offered.

Here are some phrases related to holiday traditions in Japan:

イルミネーション （いるみねーしょん）
Christmas light decorations

These dazzling lights fill many streets and corners of Japan. One of the most recognizable decorations is Osaka Castle. It’s mesmerizing to see in person if you ever get the chance.

年末詣で （ねんまつもうで）
“Year-end visit” to a temple or shrine

Temples and shrines play a huge part in Japanese culture. Around the end of the year, many individuals and businesses flock to Japan’s historical locales to seek good fortune going into the New Year.

Some common practices for people visiting temples include wishing for luck, blessing their homes and families and purifying bad thoughts and habits.

Japanese Christmas Food Traditions

ケンタッキー （けんたっきー）
Kentucky Fried Chicken

This crispy choice originated in 1974, when Takeshi Okawara, a KFC employee, started the slogan:

クリスマスはケンタッキー (くりすますはけんたっきー）
“Kentucky Fried Chicken For Christmas!”

From there, the phrase became the ho! ho! ho! of Christmas in Japan.

If fried food isn’t your thing, try something sweet. Around this time of year, Japan has got plenty of sweets to satisfy your sweet tooth!

Cakes are very common during the holidays, especially sponge cakes.

ケーキ （けーき）
cake

スポンジケーキ （すぽんじけーき）
sponge cake

Japan also has a knack for making its delicacies stand out as part of its 可愛い文化 （かわいいぶんか）— cute culture so you can’t pass a window without seeing some mouth-watering food.

Be warned, though: many of these are actually サンプル （さんぷる）— samples or fake food meant to draw in customers.

Words of Love and Affection

Christmas is all about love in Japan. It’s like another Valentine’s Day.

In addition to celebrating Valentine’s Day on February 14th, Japan also celebrates its own version of Valentine’s Day, known as ホワイトデー （ほわいとでー）— White Day on March 14th.

But when it comes to romance, Christmas takes the cake!

This is because Japan sees Christmas as the symbol of romance, as shown in this retro Japanese Christmas commercial compilation by Japanese Railway (JR) Lines.

Christmas is the perfect time for expressing affection. If you want to get sweet on that special someone, you might as well do it in Japanese:

あなたがいるだけで、クリスマスが楽しい。 （あなたがいるだけで、くりすますがたのしい）
Just being here with you makes Christmas fun!

ずっと一緒にいたい。 （ずっといっしょにいたい）
I want to be with you always!

一緒にいても、離れていても、あなたのことを想っている。 （いっしょにいても、はなれていても、あなたのことをおもっている）
Whether we’re together or apart, I’m always thinking of you.

私達の愛こそが完璧なクリスマスプレゼント。 （わたしたちのあいこそがかんぺきなくりすますぷれぜんと）
Our love is the perfect Christmas present.

愛以上に素晴らしいクリスマスプレゼントはないよね。 （あいじょうにすばらしいくりすますぷれぜんとはないよね）
There’s no gift greater than love.

And if you’ll be going out a lot, maybe Santa can give you enough confidence to ask someone out!

Japanese Christmas Media and Pop Culture

Experiencing the Holidays on TV

If you’re not interested in going out (or if you’re not in Japan), stay inside and watch some TV! Japan has got plenty of holiday specials that they broadcast in the spirit of Christmas.

紅白歌合戦 （こうはくうたがっせん）
Red and White Singing Competition

The NWK hosts this competition for the New Year. The colors almost remind me of Christmas but the focus is on celebrating the New Year with song. It’s worth watching online if you have access! For some bonus learning assistance, you can find clips from holiday programming on FluentU, along with many other native Japanese videos.

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Listening to Japanese Christmas Music

Even though Christmas is an imported holiday, Japan has a ton of incredible Christmas music to wake up your holiday spirit. Here’s a famous Japanese Christmas song:

This song is called いつかのメリークリスマス（いつかのめりーくりすます）or “Someday, A Merry Christmas,” It’s by B’z, a popular rock duo.

Other songs include:

クリスマスソング（くりすますそんぐ）
“Christmas Song” by back number, a well-known power rock trio.

Dear…again
“Dear…again” by Kohmi Hirose, although she’s most known for her “get down” song, Promise.

Merry Christmas
“Merry Christmas” by Bump of Chicken, one of Japan’s most iconic J-rock bands.

We have a list of more Christmas carols in Japanese if you’re looking for even more seasonal music.

Japanese New Year

Unlike Christmas, the New Year is a national holiday. Businesses usually close from the first of January until the third to honor the New Year.

Aside from the New Year greetings listed above, here are a couple more: 

今年もよろしくお願いします （ことしもよろしくおねがいします）
Lit. Please treat me well this year too!

This is a pretty polite way to speak and is usually written instead of spoken:

謹んで新年のお慶びを申し上げます （つつしんでしんねんのおよろこびをもうしあげます）
Humbly wishing you a Happy New Year.

You’ll also see New Year’s wishes written as:

初春（はつはる・しょしゅん）
Lit., “Spring Begins”

新年（しんねん）
“New Year”

新春（しんしゅん）
“New Spring”

迎春（げいしゅん）
“Welcoming Spring”

Why do the Japanese mention spring so much? Spring is known as the time when 桜 （さくら）”cherry blossoms” are in bloom. This represents a new beginning.

Until 節分 （せつぶん), “the coming of spring,” people often prepare for turning over a new leaf. It’s not unlike New Year’s resolutions in other parts of the world.

New Year’s Traditions

忘年会 （ぼうねんかい）
year-end parties

From offices to schools, people love gathering to have fun and exchange gifts.

カラオケボックス （からおけぼっくす）
karaoke boxes

These are karaoke rooms that are rented out for parties. Other than letting you show off your karaoke skills, it’s a fun experience that can also involve giving and receiving gifts.

初詣 （はつもうで）
The first visit of the year to a shrine or temple.

This custom usually involves tons of people gathered around to celebrate the year ending and a new beginning. Like many New Year’s traditions, it’s intended to welcome good fortune for the New Year.

年賀状 （ねんがじょう）
Japanese New Year’s Cards

These are special ways to practice writing Japanese. Brush up on your kanji by writing thoughtful cards to your friends.

You should know that the Japanese postal system works a little differently from the U.S. one. If you want to send out a card, this visual guide is extremely helpful.

除夜の鐘 （じょやのかね)
New Year’s bell.

On New Year’s Eve, temples also ring the bell 108 times, which is known as the New Year’s bell. Monks ring it to purify bad spirits and prepare for a good year.

New Year’s Foods

Take some time this December to explore some of these Japanese holiday traditions. It’s a great way to learn more about Japanese culture and spread holiday cheer at the same time!

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