Happy Birthday in Polish

Happy birthday in Polish is Wszystkiego najlepszego! (all the best). At the party, Poles sing Sto lat, which wishes the person a hundred years of life.

How to say happy birthday in Polish

The standard birthday wish is Wszystkiego najlepszego!, which means "all the best". You can say it on its own, or add z okazji urodzin (on the occasion of your birthday) to make it clear what you are celebrating. Friends often just shout Sto lat!, "a hundred years", which is also the name of the birthday song.

Why the strange endings? The full sentence behind every wish is Życzę ci... (I wish you...), and the verb życzyć takes the thing you wish in the genitive case. So wszystko najlepsze (everything best) becomes wszystkiego najlepszego, and zdrowie (health) becomes zdrowia. Poles usually drop the życzę part, but the endings stay.

Note that urodziny is a plural-only word, like "scissors" in English. You say Mam dziś urodziny (it's my birthday today) and moje urodziny (my birthday), always with plural forms.

Sto lat: the Polish birthday song

Instead of "Happy Birthday to You", Poles sing Sto lat, a short traditional folk song. Everyone joins in, usually when the cake arrives or when glasses are raised. The main line, sung twice, is:

• Sto lat, sto lat, niech żyje, żyje nam.
  A hundred years, a hundred years, may he (or she) live, live for us.

Niech means "let" or "may", and żyje is "lives", so the song wishes the person a hundred years of life. The song works the same for a man or a woman, because the verb form doesn't change. Groups often add a second round with jeszcze raz, jeszcze raz (once more, once more) in place of the first words.

Sto lat is not only for birthdays. You will hear it at name days, weddings, anniversaries, retirement parties, and even in stadiums when a team wins. As a short toast, Sto lat! means roughly "Cheers to you!". Another common toast at a party is Zdrowie solenizanta! or Zdrowie solenizantki!, "to the health of the birthday man" or "birthday woman".

Birthday wishes for cards

Polish cards use a few set patterns. The person's name goes in the vocative case, the form used for addressing someone: Ania becomes Aniu, Kasia becomes Kasiu, Tomek becomes Tomku, Marek becomes Marku, and mama becomes mamo. In letters and cards, the words for "you" are written with a capital letter as a sign of respect: Ci, Tobie, Wam.

Informal wishes (friends and family)

• Kochana Aniu! Wszystkiego najlepszego z okazji urodzin!
  Dear Ania! Happy birthday!
• Z okazji urodzin życzę Ci zdrowia, szczęścia i spełnienia wszystkich marzeń.
  On your birthday I wish you health, happiness and all your dreams coming true.
• Sto lat, Tomku! Dużo zdrowia i jeszcze więcej uśmiechu.
  Happy birthday, Tomek! Lots of health and even more smiles.
• Niech ten rok będzie najlepszy w Twoim życiu!
  May this year be the best of your life!
• Drogi Tato, wszystkiego najlepszego! Kochamy Cię.
  Dear Dad, happy birthday! We love you.
• Spóźnione, ale szczere życzenia urodzinowe!
  Belated but sincere birthday wishes!

Formal wishes (colleagues, a boss, older people)

• Z okazji urodzin proszę przyjąć najserdeczniejsze życzenia zdrowia i wszelkiej pomyślności.
  On the occasion of your birthday, please accept the warmest wishes of health and every success.
• Z okazji urodzin życzymy Pani dużo zdrowia, sukcesów i wielu powodów do radości.
  On your birthday we wish you (to a woman) lots of health, success and many reasons to be happy.
• Wszystkiego najlepszego, Panie Marku!
  Happy birthday, Mr Marek! (polite but friendly)

A card is usually signed with życzy (wishes) or życzą (wish) followed by the names, as in ...życzą Kasia i Piotr. The words you wish for all go into the genitive. Here are the ones you will use most:

Name days (imieniny)

Every day of the Polish calendar has a few first names assigned to it, mostly taken from the Catholic calendar of saints. On the day of your name, you celebrate your imieniny, your name day. Wall calendars print the names under each date, radio presenters mention them in the morning, and many news sites start the day with Dziś imieniny obchodzą... (Today's name days are...).

For older Poles, the name day was often a bigger event than the birthday. Families called, neighbors dropped by with flowers, and the person at the center was expected to host. Younger people now focus more on birthdays, but name days are still noticed. At work, it is common for the person celebrating to bring cake or sweets for colleagues. If a Polish friend's name day comes up, wishing them a happy name day is a warm gesture that shows you know the culture.

Most names have several dates in the year. People usually celebrate one of them, often the one tied to their patron saint or the one closest after their birthday. Some well-known name days:

The phrases for name days are the same as for birthdays. You only change the word: urodziny becomes imieniny, and in wishes z okazji urodzin becomes z okazji imienin.

Talking about age and birthdays

Polish asks "how many years do you have?", not "how old are you?". The word for years changes with the number: rok after 1, lata after 2, 3 and 4 (and 22, 23, 24 and so on), and lat after 5 to 21 and most other numbers.

• Ile masz lat?
  How old are you? (informal)
• Mam trzydzieści dwa lata.
  I'm thirty-two.
• W sobotę kończę czterdzieści lat.
  On Saturday I'm turning forty.
• Kiedy masz urodziny?
  When is your birthday?
• Mam urodziny dwunastego maja.
  My birthday is on 12 May.
• Zapraszam cię na moje urodziny w piątek.
  I'm inviting you to my birthday party on Friday.
• Ile pani ma lat?
  How old are you? (formal, to a woman, and best avoided)

The verb kończyć (to finish) is how Poles say "turn" an age: you finish thirty years. Round birthdays have their own nouns: osiemnastka (18th birthday party, a big event in Poland), trzydziestka, czterdziestka, pięćdziesiątka. You might hear Idziemy na osiemnastkę Kasi, "We're going to Kasia's 18th".

How to reply to birthday wishes

A simple dziękuję is always right. Here are a few more natural replies:

Dziękuję za pamięć is especially Polish. It thanks the person for remembering your day, and it works well in reply to a text or a call from someone you don't see often. To reply to many wishes on social media at once, people write Dziękuję wszystkim za życzenia!, "Thank you all for the wishes!".

Expect one more custom: in Poland, the birthday person often treats others. At work, you bring the cake. Out with friends, you might hear Solenizant stawia!, "The birthday boy is paying!", which is half a joke and half a rule.