If you’ve been studying Italian for at least a few months, you probably already know how to say Merry Christmas in Italian. But what do Italians say on Christmas Eve? In Italian, Christmas Eve is most commonly known as la Vigilia di Natale, with vigilia referring to the eve of a festival or holy day …
On New Year’s Eve, people all over the world ring in the new year by counting down the final ten seconds before the clock strikes midnight. In Italian, countdown is translated with three words: conto alla rovescia. Conto is a masculine noun that has various meanings including calculation, the check you receive at a restaurant, …
Il Natale è alle porte is a very common expression used when Christmas is only days away. It literally translates as “Christmas is at the doors” and equates to the English expressions: Il Natale è alle porte. Christmas is just around the corner. The use of the definite article il (the) is optional. You can …
The air is getting colder, the streets are filled with colourful lights, the trees are covered in beautiful decorations: that’s right, Christmas is just around the corner! In Italy, Christmas is everyone’s favourite time of year. Children, in particular, spend Christmas Eve anxiously waiting for Santa Claus, the jolly fellow who has spent the entire …
Today’s word is part of our Italian Christmas Word Advent Calendar series. Each day throughout December, we’ll post a word or phrase that is related to the holiday season. Enjoy! Christmastime is upon us yet again, and if you are studying Italian, you may well be wondering what Christmas is called in Italy! Natale/na·tà·le/(masculine noun) Christmas Unlike …
Before anyone jumps on me for writing about what is essentially a North American tradition, let me take a moment to say that I know Thanksgiving isn’t celebrated in Italy, nor does it show any sign of taking root in Italian culture. That said, I felt it was important to cover this greeting because a …