Christmas is celebrated to mark the birth of Jesus Christ. It is observed on December 25. The celebration begins on December 24 evening, called Christmas Eve. But on this day, individuals greet each other with the phrase ‘Merry Christmas’ and not ‘Happy Christmas’.
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.
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Its popularity surged after English author Charles Dickens’ 1843 novel A Christmas Carol, which established it as a formal greeting.
But, 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.
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