How do you say Happy New Year in German?
The most common way to say “happy new year” in German is Frohes neues Jahr!. Here are the main options, when to use each, and how to pronounce them.
-
Frohes neues Jahr!
FROH-es NOY-es YAHR
The standard wish, from midnight into January.
-
Ein gutes neues Jahr!
ine GOO-tes NOY-es YAHR
Equally common.
-
Guten Rutsch!
GOO-ten ROOTCH
Said BEFORE the new year, in the last days of December: literally “a good slide” into it.
-
Prosit Neujahr!
PROH-zit NOY-yahr
A toast at midnight.
Use it in a sentence
- Happy New Year and all the best!Frohes neues Jahr und alles Gute!
- Have a good start to the new year!Guten Rutsch ins neue Jahr!
- What are you doing on New Year’s Eve?Was machst du an Silvester?
- I wish you a healthy New Year.Ich wünsche dir ein gesundes neues Jahr.
Good to know
Timing matters: wish people einen guten Rutsch until New Year’s Eve, then frohes neues Jahr once it has arrived.
New Year’s Eve is Silvester. Watching the short British comedy sketch “Dinner for One” that evening is a long-running German tradition.