What does “születésnap” mean in Hungarian, and what is a “névnap”?
Három dolog, amit ne csinálj születésnapon
A2 Hungarian listening practice · Standard Hungarian · Picked for people who know a little
This comedy skit is about birthday mishaps, and the word at its centre is születésnap, “birthday.” It’s a transparent compound: születés (birth) plus nap (day). To wish someone well you say Boldog születésnapot! (“Happy Birthday!”), and notice the -t tacked onto the end, the accusative case that Hungarian adds even to a greeting.
Here’s the cultural twist worth knowing: Hungarians celebrate not only the születésnap but also the névnap, your “name day,” the calendar day attached to your first name. Many people get flowers, cake, and good wishes on both. So in Hungary you effectively get two birthdays a year.
How common are the words?
How common are the words in this A2 Hungarian listening practice video?
How common in written Hungarian
How common in spoken Hungarian
Harder words in this video
These words are harder than A2. Here is what they mean.
Source: wordfreq 3.1.1 (general) · OpenSubtitles 2018 (HermitDave) (spoken). These numbers are close, not perfect.
- ▸At Hungarian birthday and névnap (name day) celebrations
- ▸In the Hungarian “Happy Birthday” song, Boldog születésnapot
- ▸On Hungarian calendars, which list each day’s name(s)
- ▸When colleagues bring cake for someone’s névnap
- ▸Any time Hungarians plan torta (cake) and gyertya (candles)