Happy New Year!

[conuly]

Question. Why do we say "Happy NEW Year"? Why don't we say "Happy New YEAR"? The first sounds like "happy holiday", the second like "happy year", doesn't it?

Comments

[conuly]

But birthday is one word. New Year is two words. Saying it as one word emphasizes the holiday, not the fact that you want the entire year to be happy.

[eofs.livejournal.com]

But I want the new year to be happy. Not the New Year. I'm talking of the entire year, not just the holiday, and have never thought of the greeting as being for the holiday.

Of course, saying happy new year over and over I'm wondering if maybe my emphasis is slightly on the year. So perhaps that's why.

[conuly]

I'm wondering if maybe when I say that we should emphasize year, I mean that the two words should have equal emphasis.