KawiBlog · Family life
Happy birthday in Luxembourgish: the words to say it.
To wish someone a happy birthday in Luxembourg, two words are enough: “Alles Guddes!”. Here is the full phrase, the party words checked in the official dictionary, and what a child aged 3 to 6 can say on their own, one more small step to Luxembourgish for kids who can't read yet.
Alles Guddes fir däi Gebuertsdag!
“Alles Guddes” means “all the best”: it is the all-purpose phrase for celebrations, birthdays, weddings or New Year, as Luxembourg's official portal puts it. To make it a birthday wish, add fir däi Gebuertsdag, “for your birthday”.
| Luxembourgish | English |
|---|---|
| Alles Guddes! | All the best! (the all-purpose wish) |
| Alles Guddes fir däi Gebuertsdag! | Happy birthday! (to a child, a friend) |
| Ech wënschen Iech alles Guddes! | I wish you all the best! (polite form) |
| Vill Gléck! | Lots of happiness! Good luck! |
The official dictionary also gives the variant alles Gutts!. Gebuertsdag is masculine and is pronounced [ɡəbˈuːɐ̯tsdaːχ]: the LOD entry lets you hear it. It is written däi Gebuertsdag, without an n: in Luxembourgish, a final n drops before most consonants (the n rule). The LOD applies it in its examples, däi Kolleeg but däin Numm.
The party words
Tap a picture to hear the word, in the voice of the official dictionary.
| Word | Gender | English |
|---|---|---|
| Gebuertsdag | masculine | birthday |
| Kaddo | masculine | present |
| Kuch | masculine | cake |
| Käerz | feminine | candle |
| Ballon | masculine | balloon |
| Invitatioun | feminine | invitation |
Each word links to its entry in the LOD, the official dictionary, with its pronunciation. For ages, the LOD gives this example: mäi Brudder huet am Juni fënnef Joer kritt, “my brother turned five in June”. To count the candles, here are the numbers in Luxembourgish from 1 to 10.
What your child can say
At 3 or 4, Alles Guddes! is enough, and it is already a lot. Have your child practise it before the party, then let them hand over the Kaddo while naming it. When the candles are blown out, count them together in Luxembourgish.
Birthdays are only one of the year's celebrations: here are the Luxembourg celebrations your child will live through at school and at home.
In December, the wishes change: here is how to say Merry Christmas in Luxembourgish.
The classroom words, through play too.
Kawi teaches the classroom words through play, with the official pronunciation, in sessions of a few minutes to do together. Free to start.