Christmas is finally almost here! Wherever you are celebrating this year, you may be interested in reading these popular Italian sayings about Christmas.
- Natale con i tuoi, pasqua con chi vuoi.
This expression means that we should spend Christmas with our parents and our family. Whereas it’s fine to spend Easter with whoever you would like to.
- Natale viene una volta all’anno; chi non ne approfitta, tutto va a suo danno.
This is an encouragement to make the most of the Christmas period. It means that Christmas comes just once a year, for those that don’t make the most of it – it’s their loss.
- A natale, freddo cordiale.
This expression is about the temperature outside – at Christmas time it can be cold, but generally it is absolutely not freezing cold.
- Panettone, più torrone, più capitone, più cenone, uguale a indigestione.
Of course we had to have a Christmas saying about food! This one is about eating too much and having indigestions. Literally it means: Panettone, and nougat, and a large eel, and a Christmas dinner, means you’ll have indigestion!
Il panettone and il torrone are typical Italian sweets. Il capitone is a traditional Christmas dish in the south of Italy, believed to bring good luck.
- L’epifania, tutte le feste porta via.
This saying is for the end of the holidays. It means that when epiphany comes, all the holidays go away. It’s the end of the Christmas break and time to go back to school and work!
- Buon natale and felice anno nuovo!
ìThis means ‘merry Christmas and a happy new year’ in Italian. Other ways of saying this include:
- Buone feste – happy holidays
- Tanti auguri di buone feste – best wishes for a happy holiday season
- Auguri di buon anno – best wishes for a good new year
- Buon anno – happy new year
And finally, one you can use for Christmas and new year – Auguri! Best wishes!
