British Christmas Phrases You Don't Hear in America

Shortly after moving to America, it came to my attention that even the language of Christmas presented its fair share of differences. Here's a look at some British Christmas phrases that aren't as common in America.

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[average]

I’m okay with Happy Christmas, but I draw the line at Crimbo. It sounds like bimbo. I just can’t.

[baskervillebee]

Married a man named Christiansen. I've been known to hurriedly sign seasonal checks "Christmas." So far the bank hasn't noticed.

[HemlockRidge]

WOW!! Santa a Time Lord!! <mind blown>

[Px]

There us a Baltimore Christmas song called "I want crabs for Christmas." Can't get much more regional than that.

[amapparatistkwabena]

Great video! For Americans "Merry Christmas" bears NO relation to being drunk at all! It just implies an extreme level of joy and happiness! Somehow "Happy Christmas" just seems to take the jubilant celebration of the season down a few notches, but that's just to us here Stateside! Merry...er, um "Happy" Christmas to you!

[jslferrell]

I grew up with an extra holiday celebrity.
Sankta Lucia. Grew up in a Swedish environment.

[jessicaely]

Lol pissed. Reminds me when I worked at a summer camp with a bunch of Brits. We were going out drinking and I said "let's piss the night away." I get yelled at by the Americans and applauded by the Brits. Thank you Chumbawamba with your song Tubthumping.

[Haybalemelonhead]

I’ve seen Father Christmas when on holiday to Lapland when I was little

[szqsk]

The first time I heard Father Christmas it was on a show called Are You Being Served? that was on the local LA PBS station. Crimbo is like the term "x-mas atmos" that was uttered by the Prince Regent character on Black Adder.

[notthatyouasked]

He lives at the North Pole. Lappland is just a timeshare.

[amandag]

I'm really enjoying this Vlogmas. The videos are engrossing. I look forward to seeing a new video each day. Thank you Laurence!

[jennjenn]

In the Southwest US we typically have luminarias as decorations, literally paper bags filled with sand and a candle they are very simple but beautiful as they are placed around yards and streets and lit at night. You can also hear people saying Feliz Navidad sometimes rather than Mery Christmas. Also posole, biscochitos, and tamales are staple food for the holidays.

[OceanluvOC]

I saw Christmas cards today that said Have a very Merry Happy Christmas! First time I’ve ever seen that! Out of all the vlogs I’m enjoying yours the most! 👍🏼

[christinedorman]

On the subject of Father Christmas / Santa Claus / St. Nicholas, he also is known in Cajun country as Papa Noel. And his sleigh is not drawn by reindeer. It's pulled by possums!

[ButacuPpucatuB]

Yessss!!!! I keep telling my family and friends that Father Christmas is, indeed, a time lord. How else will he visit every country and get it all done before any child awakes? I also agree that he lives in Lapland. For in Lapland they raise real reindeer. I’m still a child at heart, can you tell??🦌

[Babarudra]

another Christmas tradition you've embraced, reruns packaged as originals! I'm on to you! Merry Holidays!

[FireCracker]

I love it! Here's an idea for an episode of Doctor Who entitled "Father Claus":
(For this scenario I'm calling the Doctor "he", but you can use she if you prefer)
The Doctor has has discovered a Dalek who puts a curse on him. The curse causes him to leaps into the human figure of "Father Claus", an amalgamation of both "Santa Claus" and "Father Christmas". The fact that he is a hybrid makes him both men at the same time. He first ends up in the North Pole, where the same Dalek who cursed him has made half of the elves evil robotic gnomes who are out to strike Christmas from the face of the earth. He and his trusty companion (friend) have to identify which are gnomes and which are actually Santa's elves. They use the sonic screwdriver to detect electronic signals that come from the robotic gnomes, and once they are all identified, he uses the screwdriver to disable all of the gnomes. Everything seems great until they realize that Christmas has not yet been saved and there is more work to do. They hop in the Tardis and head over to Lapland, where the Dalek has manipulated the Northern Lights into radiation, which are putting a spell on all of the reindeer, thus making them unable to fly. The Doctor has to use Telepathy to create a barrier to prevent the rays of the Northern lights coming through. Then, he teleports himself into the atmosphere to absorb the radiation himself. There he encounters the Dalek, who chases him back to the ground. There, he steals the gunstick and sends him into the void. He is then able to remove the barrier from around Lapland, restore the Northern Lights to their previous (non-radiated) glory. The curse is undone and the reindeer are once again free and Christmas is restored to all the world.

[runrgrl]

Santa Claus is a wizard and his bag has an extension charm like Hermione’s bag!

[peteg]

Pretty sure the original poem "A Visit from St. Nicholas ('Twas the Night before Christmas)" has "Happy Christmas to All!" near the end. It's been swapped out for "Merry" most of the time, but at least in the 1820's, "Happy Christmas" was a thing in America.

[nvdawahyaify]

As an american, when you said pissed, I was confused for a moment and had to remind myself that pissed is the same as piss drunk. When we say pissed, we mean pissed off(angry).