Wesołego Alleluja or Wesołych Świąt?

From my observation Wesołych Świąt (used in December to mean Happy Christmas) is used between Poles these days to mean Happy Easter more often than the traditonal Wesołego Alleluja. Although both main tabloids -- Fakt and Super Express -- have Wesołego Alleluja on their front pages today, workmates, friends, neighbours, etc. usually just say Wesołych Świąt..

Was the Wesołych Świąt something the PRL-ites pushed like the way they created a Święto Umarlaków or some such nonsense in place of Wszystkich Świętych.

Perhaps a glance at pre-war Polish Easter greeting cards would show whether that hypothesis is true.

I was born and brought up in the UK and I have always used the phrase for both feasts.

I have never heard any person use Wesołego Alleluja in any setting in person to person situations - Wesołego Alleluja is just a print fancy thing (or a clergy speak after the mass)

Well, I grew up in Poland and can tell, that both phrases are correct.
Commonly Poles say Wesolych Swiat, the phrase Wesolego Alleluja is determined by the influence of the church, and most of all is to see rather on postcards.

During my 7 years in PRL-Poland, Wesołego Alleluja was used quite often in Wrocław and Zielona Góra where I spent most of my time.

I've never heard Wesołego Alleluja in Poznan, just Wesołych Świąt (maybe Wielkanocnych added).

Sometimes people forego all of that with friends and just wish each other "Smacznego jajka i mokrego dyngusa" (tasty egg and wet Easter Monday)

NO IT DOESNT MEAN "HAPPY CHRISTMAS"!!! It means "Happy Holidays"!
You wanted to write something smart and it turned out to be completely opposite. Polish is not English. "Święta" means "holidays" not "Christmas". Christmas is Boże Narodzenie. Święto is any holiday (religious or not). It's a universal word.

As someone earlier wrote "Wesołego Alleluja" is a postcard wish. No one rather says it when seeing people. It just sounds flamboyant.

If someone has more time to wish decent wishes then say "życzę Panu/Pani radosnych i spokojnych Świąt Wielkiej Nocy."


That's because they ARE GREETING CARDS! Wesołego Alleluja is still a greeting card standard wish. How do you know that before war people didn't say "Happy holidays" on Easter when seeing a neighbour?


What's that? Do you know that word umarlak is colloquial and disrespectful? Such word certainly couldn't be used as a name for All Saints. Besides that Wszystkich Świętych is not the same as Święto Zmarłych.

We use "Wesołych świąt" and "Wesołego alleluja". Both are correct. But we usually use in Christmas, but nothing will happen when you say "wesołych świąt" in easter.

Wesołych Świąt is the typical Christmas greeting but it literraly means Joy to the world and that is why it is used on Easter because you can say Joy to the World cause Jesus rose from the dead.. Polish people are Catholic and some of the translation of grammar and speech can be better explained by explaing the religious connection..

This is why some even translate Wesołych Świąt as Happy Holidays which also clareifys it okay to say on Easter as well!

So to sum it up you can use both; sometimes different people from different parts of Poland use one or the other but both are acceptable. In Church the Priests say Wesołego Alleluja because it fits the enviorment. And on store banners it will say the same, it's more formal but to your friends and family as well as your neighbors Wesołych Świąt is the way to go!

Wesołych świąt most certainly does not mean "joy to the world" (which would be radość światu, which sounds kind of dumb and awkward).

Wesołych świąt means "(I wish you) happy holidays". The plural IIRC refers to the fact that both major Christian holidays (Christmas and Easter) are celebrated for two days (at least!) in Poland.

I think we should consult with Lenusz Gomulka of Chicago Push. Len?

Technically, it means " Happy World" which doesn't translate too well into English. Literal transfers of language sometimes add confusion (and worse) between people(s). I'm sure that more than one war has been started by such mistakes.

It's not świat, it's świĄt, I think it comes more from 'saints' than 'world', but maybe I'm wrong. Someone should find the etymology (I tried, but not that easy when you don't master Polish).

You're right and the translation is Happy Holidays

Thanks Lenka ;)

What then is the appropriate response to, say, "Mokrego Śmigusa Dyngusia!"? I've always been curious about that, but simply felt embarrassed about asking my Polish colleagues. They know I'm Jewish, by the way, and in fact just got finished wishing me "Wesołych Świąt Pesacha!" I couldn't very well have responded "Nawzajem!", now, could I? A ticklish situation.

lol

Really? I always relate the word 'święto' with holy. If someone tells me 'dzisiaj jest wielke święto,' I assume they mean it is a holy day for whatever reason. Even when you here them use a phrase like 'wielkie święto piłki nożnej,' as an example, they mean it is almost like a 'holy day'/very important day in football.

Right, but if you respond "Wesołych Świąt" everyone is happy.

Re; the OP, both terms are used, but mainly "Wesołych Świąt.

"


"Wesołego Prima Aprilis" in jest.

Many thanks, Jolu:-) Thought it was something like "Szczęście Boże!" or something like that. Guess I was wrong (again)LOL

Hope you had a "wet" Easter, by the way. Seems this distinctly Polish tradition has no equivalent in English or other languages. The theme of "baptismal cleansing" though on the occasion of Christ's resurrection following Lent and Holy Week might be significant.

Any ideas?

so now we know who's to blame for this Easter weather ;)

Funny, milawi!
Or as my German nanny used to chide me for not finishing my supper regularly, "So YOU'RE the one who's making it rain all day!"

:-)

Don't exaggerate. We're not so much catholic to change our language to fit religious rules :-)

Cinek

Nevertheless Cinek, a language as homogeneous as Polish for example, may not acknowledge the sort of religious pluricity as, for instance, English, might:-) After all, we in the US are practiced with the melting pot for umpteen years, Poles (not to mention most Europeans) aren't!

If anyone dosn't like "Wesołego Alleluja!" as a very common way of greeting someone before and at the Easter time in Poland, I would like to add only that I have a family in podkarpackie voievodship and they used to say even more because sth like this at all Easter time: "Chrystus Zmartwychwstał" to what people answer: "Prawdziwie zmartwychwstał", sometimes even they add more but I don't really know all of it....

I've even heard Polish children wish one another "Wesołych jajkach!", but I presume it's meant as a joke?

Probably you mean: "Wesołych jajek, jajeczek, baranków, pisanek, zajączków..." and all the rest Easter symbols from little poems which are sometimes sent as wishes before the Easter.

what would someone write in a greeting card to friend or family for Easter....typical????

1. Wesołych Świąt Wielkanocnych!

2. Wesołego Alleluja!

3. To both of the above may be added: oraz smacznego święconego or smacznego jajka, also mokrego śmigusa-dyngusa.

4. Z okazji Zmartwychwstania Pańskiego obfitych łask Bożych życzy........ (write the wisher's name on the dotted line)

Spring Yesterday, 10:19pm #28

what would someone write in a greeting card to friend or family for Easter....typical????

click here
kartki.pl/pl/cardse/kartki-wielkanocne-84

That is the blandest collection of so-called Easter cards I have ever seen. Even the sole religious image incongruously shows not Christ Resurrected by Christ the Good Shepherd. Where is the Easter Lamb with banner? How about some Polish pisanki? What about a tall, tapered babka, pussy willows, śmigus-dyngus and food blessing on Holy Saturday? Poland is losing its cultural identity by wallowing in such commercial crap, and that pertains not only to Easter. Try to find some genuinely Polish-themed clipart online.