Why do American say ‘holidays’ instead of Christmas

Cantheowneroftheredcorsapleasemovetheircar · 23/10/2025 22:26

Ponoka7 · 22/10/2025 21:44

Well they aren't British, so boxing day is irrelevant. My GM and Mother wouldn't have been aware of Black Friday. Kwanzaa starts on December 26th.
Happy holidays is inclusive, with America being a mix of heritage/immigrants/cultures/religions.

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I am aware boxing day is irrelevant because they aren't British.
I'm not sure why you're telling me this and what your point is.

Beenwhereyouareagain · 22/10/2025 22:27

Because all of our winter holidays fall so closely together. The holidays includes Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas Eve and Day, Kwanza, and New Year's Eve and Day. Some years there may be others, depending on the calendar.

Really, because Halloween decor is in the stores in August and Christmas displays in September, it all runs together a little. When I go to Lowe's, I find a Frankenstein's Castle display juxtaposed to Santa and his reindeer a little disconcerting.

And as you probably know, in the US, we call our trips vacations. Just cultural differences. 😉

mindutopia · 22/10/2025 22:26

Because it’s a more historically religiously diverse country and not everyone is celebrating Christmas in December. Hanukkah and Kwanza both celebrated in December and depending on the year, sometimes other holidays as well.

The UK historically is a Christian country. America is founded on religious freedom (never mind the evangelical Christian crackpots of modern times).

I’m Jewish. I don’t celebrate Christmas religiously. I quite appreciate a happy holidays. I’m not offended by happy Christmas either. But the nice thing about living in America (there aren’t many) was that my holidays were more visible than they are here. A menorah in the town square next to the Christmas tree. You don’t see that in the UK. (I still prefer it here, menorah or no menorah 😂).

Concernedauntie3 · 22/10/2025 22:17

In US English, vacation = UK English holiday, so holidays in US means something more like holy days or bank holidays.

Think of Madonna's song Holiday, it's about taking one day off work, not a week on the Costas.

coffeerevelsrule · 22/10/2025 22:12

Re your original point about it being a more religious country, the word holiday is actually quite fitting as it is derived from 'holy days', from which our holidays are of course (mainly) derived anyway.

awkwardasfuck · 22/10/2025 22:08

mouseaka · 22/10/2025 21:23

when they’re such an overwhelmingly religious country?

Meanwhile over here in the UK we’re far more secular but everyone just calls it Christmas?

It’s weird, if anything you’d expect it to be the other way around!

Where do you think the word holiday comes from...

GeneralPeter · 22/10/2025 22:06

Depends where you are in the US. In NYC it’s the default because lots of people have other cultural holidays around the same time.

I remember a surreal cross-cultural conversation when trying to book a Christmas dinner for a group of Brits and assorted international types, not one of whom was Christian, and being admonished by the restaurant lady that it was exclusionary to call it a Christmas dinner becuase didn’t I realise that if anyone present were not Christian they would be offended.

Overtheatlantic · 22/10/2025 21:50

Because America is an entirely different culture to the U.K.

HTH

InteriorPond · 22/10/2025 21:48

HappyHedgehog247 · 22/10/2025 21:47

Yes it starts at thanksgiving and includes Hanukkah as well as Christmas!

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This.

HappyHedgehog247 · 22/10/2025 21:47

mouseaka · 22/10/2025 21:31

Oh yes, I guess that makes sense. So it’s more a celebratory ‘season’ over there, than a single event?

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Yes it starts at thanksgiving and includes Hanukkah as well as Christmas!

ifyoulikechocolate · 22/10/2025 21:45

There’s a fair few celebrations around in December like Hanukkah and Kwanzaa.

Ponoka7 · 22/10/2025 21:44

Cantheowneroftheredcorsapleasemovetheircar · 22/10/2025 21:38

They all go back to work on boxing day though. Can you imagine?
Some don't even know what boxing day is

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Well they aren't British, so boxing day is irrelevant. My GM and Mother wouldn't have been aware of Black Friday. Kwanzaa starts on December 26th.
Happy holidays is inclusive, with America being a mix of heritage/immigrants/cultures/religions.

mynameiscalypso · 22/10/2025 21:40

I assumed that it was partly because of the separation between church and state in the US.

Cantheowneroftheredcorsapleasemovetheircar · 22/10/2025 21:38

EverybodyLTB · 22/10/2025 21:27

I always assumed it was because their actual holiday allowances were terrible in the US but everyone has a good chunk of time off over Christmas, so they called it the holidays as so many people are off work. No idea why I thought that!

They all go back to work on boxing day though. Can you imagine?
Some don't even know what boxing day is

Shufflebumnessie · 22/10/2025 21:37

I was always under the impression that it's because Thanksgiving, Hannukkah and Christmas all fall within a short period. Saying "Happy Holidays" is a way to acknowledge them all in one go.

comfyshoes2022 · 22/10/2025 21:37

It doesn’t include Thanksgiving. It’s because of Hanukkah. And maybe an expansive view would also include Kwanzaa, NYE, snd Winter Solstice.

mondaytosunday · 22/10/2025 21:37

Holidays includes Hanukkah, New Years Day, Thanksgiving etc as well as Christmas.

mondaytosunday · 22/10/2025 21:37

Holidays includes Hanukkah, New Years Day, Thanksgiving etc as well as Christmas.

Cantheowneroftheredcorsapleasemovetheircar · 22/10/2025 21:37

mouseaka · 22/10/2025 21:31

Oh yes, I guess that makes sense. So it’s more a celebratory ‘season’ over there, than a single event?

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Yes, and I think there are more Jewish people than in the UK (could be wrong)

Krakinou · 22/10/2025 21:35

Ameri English is annoying to me as a Brit but it’s what my spellchecker corrects me to so I guess it’s the future and you’ll probably be using it yourself soon enough.

Original poster

mouseaka · 22/10/2025 21:31

helpfulperson · 22/10/2025 21:24

Does the holidays not include Thanksgiving as well?

Oh yes, I guess that makes sense. So it’s more a celebratory ‘season’ over there, than a single event?

OP posts:

OverDram · 22/10/2025 21:31

Because of Hanukkah

britinnyc · 22/10/2025 21:31

It is an inclusive term and the holidays technically start with Thanksgiving. Plus, despite what our current Leader and his cronies say we do have separation of church and state and a lot of the population do not celebrate Christmas. It is just nicer to use the more generic term

EverybodyLTB · 22/10/2025 21:27

I always assumed it was because their actual holiday allowances were terrible in the US but everyone has a good chunk of time off over Christmas, so they called it the holidays as so many people are off work. No idea why I thought that!

AliceTheCamelHasTheHumpSoGoAliceGoBomBomBom · 22/10/2025 21:26

There are a few different religious holidays in December, and many people don't celebrate Christmas.