Happy New Year in Japanese: 10+ ways to say

Happy New Year everyone! 明（あ）けましておめでとうございます! We hope you’ve enjoyed a great time with your loved ones during these holidays.

In Japanese, you can say the phrase “Happy New Year” with various expressions. It partly depends on whether you’re in December or January, but ultimately it comes down to personal preference, too.

How to “Congragulate” Something in Japanese

明（あ）けましておめでとうございます。
Akemashite omedetou gozaimasu.

What a wonderful expression to get familiar with. The word 明（あ）けまして is based on the ideogram “明（あ）“, composed of the sun (日) and the moon (月). This kanji has many meanings, among which you’ll find ‘bright’, ‘dawn’, and ‘changing’.

明（あ）けましておめでとう is celebrating the dawn of a new year, or simply speaking, the new year’s opening. おめでとうございます is the phrase you’ll use for congratulations in various situations, marriages, birthdays and graduations.

These are some ways in which you can use おめでとうございます:

ご結婚（けっこん）おめでとうございます。
Gokekkon omedetou gozaimasu.
Congratulations on your marriage.

合格（ごうかく）おめでとうございます。
Goukaku omedetou gozaimasu.
Congratulations on passing the exam.

お誕生日（たんじょうび）おめでとうございます。
Otanjoubi omedetou gozaimasu.
Happy birthday.
 

Check out our other blog posts on Japanese New Year:

• 7 Things Japanese People Do to Celebrate New Year in Japan
• Getting to Know Japanese New Year Culture
• Fun Facts About Japanese New Year Traditional Dish: Osechi Ryouri (おせち料理)
• What’s A Japanese New Year Postcard, Nengajo?
• New Year’s Day: A Time of Tradition

Different Ways to Say “Happy New Year!”

You’ll also find several variations for saying the expression. The most basic one would be akemashite omedetou, but you can change them if you want to spruce something more interesting.

明（あ）けましておめでとうございます。
Akemashite omedetou gozaimasu.
Happiness to you on the dawn [of a New Year]

新年（しんねん）おめでとうございます。
Shinnen omedetou gozaimasu.
Happy New Year!

新年、明（あ）けましておめでとうございます。
Shinnen, akemashite omedetou gozaimasu.
Happiness to you on the dawn of a New Year.

If you’re late to give your wishes, you’ll have to politely apologize.

遅（おく）ればせながら、明（あ）けましておめでとうございます。
Okurebasenagara, akemashite omedetou gozaimasu.
It is a little late, but Happy New Year.

どうぞよろしくお願（ねが）いいたします。
Douzo yoroshiku onegai itashimasu.
I look forward to being with you.

When wishing a happy new year in Japanese, you’ll also say 今年（ことし）もどうぞよろしくお願（ねが）いします which can be translated as “we’ll be counting on you this year as well”.

Keep in mind that the expression can’t be translated easily. Depending on the context, it may have various meanings.

When following new year wishes, the phrase calls for a good relationship this year as well. For most Japanese, it’s a custom greeting mostly used when you are around your colleagues and clients.

Indicating “This Year”

‘This year’ can be expressed with 今年（ことし）, more natural and friendly or with 本年（ほんねん）, in a formal document and polite letter.

明（あ）けましておめでとうございます。本年（ほんねん）も変（か）わりませず、よろしくお願（ねが）いもうしあげます。
Happy New Year. Without change, I will be counting on you this year as well.

遅（おく）ればせながら、本年（ほんねん）もどうぞ よろしくお願（ねが）いいたします。
It’s a little late, but I will be counting on you this year as well.

ご挨拶（あいさつ）が遅（おく）れましたが、明（あ）けましておめでとうございます。 本年（ほんねん）もどうぞよろしくお願（ねが）いいたします。
I am late to present my salutations, but Happy New Year. I will be counting on you this year as well.

When giving your wishes to your boss, make sure to thank him for his guidance!

今年（ことし）もよろしくご指導（しどう）くださいますよう、お願（願）もうしあげます。
This year as well, I will be counting on your guidance.