Photo: David Tadevosian/Shutterstock

How to Say "Happy Birthday" in 40 Languages

Languages
by Matador Creators Apr 15, 2022

Travelers have friends in every corner of the world. And whether they talk every week or just a couple of times a year (at New Year, for example), the best way to keep the connection alive is to know how to wish your international friends a happy birthday in their own language. Receiving a card, or a simple text, with a birthday note in your native tongue from a far-flung friend makes the occasion special — it’s an act of kindness that won’t be soon forgotten.

The list below will teach you how to say “Happy birthday” in different languages – 40 of them, actually! So bookmark it, and when the occasion comes up to send your good wishes to your friend who lives far away, you’ll have everything you need to make them feel appreciated.

Happy birthday in different languages from A-E

Language Spelling Pronunciation
Afrikaans Gelukkige verjaarsdag Kheluk-uh-khuh fer-yaar-shdarh
Albanian Gëzuar ditëlindjen Gez-oo-ar dit-eh-lind-yen
Arabic كل سنه وانت طيب (to a man)
سنة وانتِ طيبة (to a woman)
Ko-lo Sa-na ua In-ta ta-yab (to a man)
Ko-lo Sa-na ua In-ti ta-ya-ba (to a woman)
Azerbaijani (Azeri) Ad günün mübarək Ad-gunun-mubaarek
Bahasa melayu (Malay) Selamat hari lahir Si-lu-mat ha-ri la-heer
Basque Zorionak zuri So-rio-nak Su-ree
Bosnian Sretan rođendan Sre-tan ro-djen-den
Bulgarian Честит Рожден ден Ches-tit ro-jden den
Catalan Per molts anys Palr-moz-anyis
Czech Všechno nejlepší k narozeninám fchek-no ney-lep-chik na-ro-ze-nyi-naama
Dutch Fijne verjaardag Fay-ne ver-yaar-darh
Estonian Palju õnne sünnipäevaks Pa-liu od-ne shu-ni-pa-vaks

 

Happy birthday in different languages from F-L

Language Spelling Pronunciation
Farsi .تولدت مبارک Ta-wa-lu-dit mu-ba-rak
Filipino (Tagalog) Maligayang kaarawan Ma-li-ga-yang ka-ra-wan
French Joyeux anniversaire Joa-yieh za-ni-ver-ser
German Alles Gute zum Geburtstag A-les Gu-tuh dzum Guh-bor-stak
Greek χαρούμενα γενέθλια Ha-ru-me-na dje-ne-thlia
Gujarati જન્મદિવસ ની શુભકામનાઓ Jan-ma-di-vas ni sub-hka-mnao
Hebrew יום הולדת שמח Yom Hoo-leh-det sa-may-ach
Hindi जन्मदिन की शुभकामनाएं Djan-ma-din kee shub-kaa-mnaen
Hungarian Boldog születésnapot Bol-dog su-la-te-shna-pot
Irish Gaelic lá breithe shona duit Law breh-ha sun-ah ditch
Italian buon compleanno buon kom-ple-ano
Japanese 誕生日 おめでとう Tan-djo-bee o-me-de-to
Korean 생일 축하합니다 san-gil chu-kaha-mni-da

 

Happy birthday in different languages from M-Z

Language Spelling Pronunciation
Maltese Awguri f’għeluq sninek Au-goori feh-looq snee-nek
Mandarin Chinese 生日快乐 Shun-gri kway-luh
Maori Rā Whānau ki a Koe Raah faah-nuh kyaa qweh
Norwegian Gratulerer med dagen Gra-too-ler me-daa-gen
Polish Wszystkiego najlepszego z okazji urodzin Vshi-stkye go nay-lep-shee-go zoka-zyi oo-roo-jean
Portuguese Feliz aniversário fleez ani-ver-saa-rio
Quebec French Bonne fête bon fet
Romanian La mulţi ani La mul-tsi ani
Russian С Днём рождения Sdnyem ​​rosh-deni-ya
Scottish Gaelic Là breith sona dhuit ko-la-brey so-na-gurt
Spanish feliz cumpleaños fe-lis coom-play-anyos
Thai สุขสันต์วันเกิด Suk san wan guuhd
Turkish İyi ki doğdun Ee-kyi do-doon
Urdu آپ کوجنم دن مبارک ہو ap ko ja-nam din Mu-ba-rak ho
Welsh Penblwydd Hapus Pen-bluith haa-pis

 

Do you know how to say “Happy birthday” in any other languages? Share it with us so we can get closer to representing the world’s thousands of languages!

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