It’s a nice gesture and good fun to wish someone a happy birthday in their own language. If a birthday’s coming up for a Spanish speaking friend or colleague, here’s what you need to know.
The basics: Happy Birthday in Spanish is feliz cumpleaños. For those who don’t know, the letter ‘n’ with the accent is pronounced like the ‘n’ in ‘onion’.
You can also say felicidades which is like saying congratulations. A very useful phrase for all kinds of happy occasions. These phrases are commonly used to wish someone a happy birthday, and can be used for both close friends and family members.
If you know the person well, you might also say ¡Que tengas un lindo día! or ¡Que pases un bonito día!, which both mean “have a nice day.” Finally, don’t forget to include the person’s name, whether you say it before or after feliz cumpleaños: ¡Feliz cumpleaños, Juan!
If you’re celebrating a birthday with a group of people, you may also want to say “¡Que tengas un feliz cumpleaños!” (“Have a happy birthday!”). For close friends and family members, you can also add on a personal message after the initial greeting.
Saying “Happy Birthday” in Spanish is a great way to show someone that you care about them, and it’s also a good way to practice your Spanish language skills. So next time someone you know has a birthday coming up, don’t forget to say “Feliz cumpleaños“!
If it’s up to you to organize a birthday card or even more elaborate decorations, then Amazon sells birthday cards, cake decorations and loads of other birthday related stuff, all in Spanish. Here’s the link: Spanish birthday stuff.
