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I think that the difference between saying Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas depends on who you are saying it to.

If someone is celebrating an occasion, you congratulate them. You might say Happy Birthday, or Happy Wedding Anniversary. You would only say this to the person who was celebrating the event, not to everyone in the room.

This is true of holiday greetings. It so happens that for historical reasons, many Western countries have a national holiday at Christmas, and this seems to confuse a lot of people. I can't understand why!

If the person you are speaking to is a Christian, and is celebrating Christmas, then it is appropriate to wish them a Merry Christmas, ie hope that they have a lovely time while they are celebrating.

If the person you are speaking to is a Jew, a Sikh or even an atheist, and won't be celebrating the religious festival, then you wish them a Happy Holiday, ie hoping they have a lovely break from work and keep well until you see them again. They won't have a Merry Christmas, because they won't be celebrating it!

It is only appropriate to say Merry Christmas to people who are celebrating the religious event. You would also wish these same people a Happy Easter. If the person you are speaking to will be celebrating another event, then it would be nice to recognize this with a greeting too - you might wish them a Happy Hanukkah, for example.

If you don't know whether the person will be celebrating or not, you could ask them first. A direct and polite "Will you be celebrating this Christmas?" would not offend. Then you will know which greeting to give.

If you are sending greetings cards, then a message of Season's Greetings and a snow scene or robin would be the best option.

I hope you manage to plow your way through the minefield of holiday greetings this winter!

Roll on January!

Learn more about this author, Susan Hibberd.
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