The phrase ‘Merry Christmas’ became well-known in the US and has done so at least since the 19th century. But according to a Reader’s Digest article, the UK is where the phrase ‘Merry Christmas’ first appears in writing, in a letter from a bishop to the royal minister Thomas Cromwell in 1534.
According to the grammar website Grammarist, the phrase may have its roots even further back in time, when it was written in a letter as a prayer asking God to grant the recipient a ‘merry Christmas.’
Its popularity skyrocketed after English author Charles Dickens’ 1843 novel A Christmas Carol, which established it as a formal greeting.
But despite the origins, people in the UK generally wish ‘Happy Christmas’ to each other.
The royal family and Queen Elizabeth II have continued using the phrase ‘Happy Christmas’ in their official broadcasts to subjects. This includes the annual speech broadcast to the country on December 25.
It is believed this has contributed to the term’s widespread usage in the country.
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