# Hey, Nava! Simple Spanish Translation - "Christmas Holidays" **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 8, 2006, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-nava-simple-spanish-translation-christmas-holidays/379602 "2006-11-08T20:13:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Carol\_the\_Impaler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Carol\_the\_Impaler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carol_the_Impaler)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2006, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-nava-simple-spanish-translation-christmas-holidays/379602/1 "2006-11-08T20:13:20Z")
Is there a word in Spanish for the Christmas Holidays? Context - we are wanting to translate an advertisement to get people downtown for our “Holiday Lights Festival”, you know those things. They start soon after Thanksgiving and run through Christmas. So, we don’t want to use “holidays”, we don’t want to use “Christmas”, we want to refer to the season itself. What say you? I thought there was a word for it, but I don’t have my dictionaries here with me. ---
**Author:** ![Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/50afbb/32.png) [@Duck\_Duck\_Goose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duck_Duck_Goose)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2006, 8:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-nava-simple-spanish-translation-christmas-holidays/379602/2 "2006-11-08T20:36:20Z")
According to Google’s Language Tools, “holidays” is “días de fiesta”, and “Christmas holidays” is “días de fiesta de Navidad”. FWIW. ---
**Author:** ![Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hypnagogic_jerk/32/4252_2.png) [@Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypnagogic_Jerk)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2006, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-nava-simple-spanish-translation-christmas-holidays/379602/3 "2006-11-08T22:45:10Z")
**niblet\_head** , I guess **Nava** would know the word (if any) that is used _in Spain_ for this time period. Since you’re in the US, maybe one of our American Hispanic posters could give a better answer. Someone like **xtisme** , or **JRDelirious**. (Both of them are Hispanic, aren’t they?) ---
**Author:** ![Carol\_the\_Impaler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Carol\_the\_Impaler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carol_the_Impaler)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2006, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-nava-simple-spanish-translation-christmas-holidays/379602/4 "2006-11-08T23:50:18Z")
Yeah, you’re right. Our audience is primarily Mexican immigrants. I just couldn’t think of anyone else I knew spoke Spanish! Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Ale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Ale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ale)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2006, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-nava-simple-spanish-translation-christmas-holidays/379602/5 "2006-11-09T01:23:53Z")
Over here “¡Felices Fiestas!” works fine; I´m not sure if further north it´s the norm or not ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2006, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-nava-simple-spanish-translation-christmas-holidays/379602/6 "2006-11-09T01:56:29Z")
“Fiestas Decembrinas,” according to my from-Mexico wife who’s having trouble wondering why anyone in the USA would want to skirt around the mentioning of Christmas during, you know, _Christmas_. (I only said _gracias_ politely rather than try to explain it to her.) So I guess I’ll venture something like this: “Vengan a celebrar las fiestas decembrinas con el espectaculo de luces!” ---
**Author:** ![CBEscapee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b19c9b/32.png) [@CBEscapee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CBEscapee)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2006, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-nava-simple-spanish-translation-christmas-holidays/379602/7 "2006-11-09T03:33:41Z")
Try “festival de luces decembrinas”. ---
**Author:** ![Rigamarole](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/77aa72/32.png) [@Rigamarole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rigamarole)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2006, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-nava-simple-spanish-translation-christmas-holidays/379602/8 "2006-11-09T03:48:52Z")
[QUOTE=severus] **niblet\_head** , I guess **Nava** would know the word (if any) that is used _in Spain_ for this time period. Since you’re in the US, maybe one of our American Hispanic posters could give a better answer. Someone like **xtisme** , or **JRDelirious**. (Both of them are Hispanic, aren’t they?) [/QUOTE] So are only certain posters allowed to answer GQ questions now? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2006, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-nava-simple-spanish-translation-christmas-holidays/379602/9 "2006-11-09T05:38:53Z")
[QUOTE=niblet\_head] Is there a word in Spanish for the Christmas Holidays? They start soon after Thanksgiving and run through Christmas. So, we don’t want to use “holidays”, we don’t want to use “Christmas”, we want to refer to the season itself. What say you? I thought there was a word for it, but I don’t have my dictionaries here with me. [/QUOTE] Heck, there isn’t even an English word for it. 😉 By which I mean, I’ve never run into the phrase “Christmas Holidays” before. I’ve heard Christmas, Christmastime, the Holidays, and (the) Holiday Season. The last one is what you seem to be describing. Are you sure “Christmas Holidays” is exactly what you want to say? ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2006, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-nava-simple-spanish-translation-christmas-holidays/379602/10 "2006-11-09T05:40:13Z")
[QUOTE=Rigamarole] So are only certain posters allowed to answer GQ questions now? [/QUOTE] That’s right, and you’re not one of them, so buzz off. 😉 Yes, that was a joke. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2006, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-nava-simple-spanish-translation-christmas-holidays/379602/11 "2006-11-10T01:56:48Z")
I’ve heard them referred to as the _fiestas navideñas_ here in Panama; you wouldn’t refer to the the Christmas holidays without referring to Christmas itself. (Since Thanksgiving is not celebrated in Latin America, the concept of a holiday period that runs from late November until New Year is not really widespread. If there is such a thing as the Christmas “season” in Panama, it may kick in after Mother’s Day on December 8.) If I were writing it, I might go with _festival de luces navideñas._ ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2006, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hey-nava-simple-spanish-translation-christmas-holidays/379602/12 "2006-11-10T17:55:35Z")
[QUOTE=Colibri] Mother’s Day on December 8. [/QUOTE] Mother’s Day on the feast day of the Immaculate Conception. Makes sense!