Urime për krishtlindje, god jul, suba nattalak wewa! Are the bells already ringing? Not yet? But the Christmas bells will soon be ringing once again – and festive greetings will be sent off round the world in all the various languages. Correct - the above strange-sounding words are simply translations of “Happy Christmas!” into languages we are not familiar with. They are just three of the 48 Apostroph languages: Albanian, Norwegian and Sinhalese.
Not only do Christmas greetings sound very different in other languages, the way the festival is celebrated varies, too. In Rio de Janeiro for example, Father Christmas ushers in the Christmas season with a spectacular event. Every year a helicopter flies him into the Maracanã soccer stadium – the biggest in Brazil. This is followed by a bombastic party featuring all kinds of acts and festive speeches. By contrast, the start of Christmas festivities in Russia is marked by the rising morning star on 7 January. Here Christmas is observed according to the Julian calendar, 13 days later than in most parts of Europe. In Russia it is a quiet, contemplative festival celebrated among family and friends, and children receive their gifts from Jack Frost. There is bell-ringing throughout the entire day. Real die-hard Russians celebrate outdoors: they decorate the Christmas tree, enjoy the outdoors and camp in the snow.
Apostroph Group reliably takes care of your translations into 48 languages, day after day. We would also be happy to translate your personal Christmas greetings – and you have 48 languages to choose from.
