Many of you may be like me; a "banana" (yellow on the outside, white on the inside). Coming from a Chinese family, it is customary to wish my relatives well with sophisticated Chinese idioms which I struggle a lot with. If you can relate, here are 5 great phrases you can use to wish your relatives this Chinese New Year!
1: 大吉大利 (dà jí dà lì)
This phrase means to wish someone good luck and great profits. It is common for Chinese to be business owners like our ancestors were back in China. In fact, Chinese immigrants survived across the world by starting their own businesses rather than being a migrant worker. Hence, to wish someone 大吉大利 would add significant weight to your greeting.
2: 心想事成 (xīn xiǎng shì chéng)
This phrase can be used to wish for someone's wishes to come true. Obviously, a great majority of your relatives' wishes would be for them to be rich. However, some may wish for other things like great health, happiness, good friendship, and it can even go as for as to winning the lottery. To wish your relatives for their wishes to come true is great for relatives you don't know very well as it covers a diverse set of goals.
3: 阖家欢乐 ( hé jiā huān lè)
阖家欢乐 is used when wishing someone joyfulness in one's family. Again, this covers a wide range of relatives as most people have families. Families are great together when love and joy are in an abundance; a happy family may lead to a longer lifespan for some, which leads us to our next Chinese New Year Greeting!
4: 长命百岁 (Cháng mìng bǎi shuì)
Mainly a very important phrase for the elderly, 长命百岁 is used to wish someone longevity. Being exposed to Chinese culture all my life, I grew to learn why Chinese want to live a very long life. I eventually came to a few hypotheses that may be true which are to see as many generations of their offspring and possible, to eat as much as they can, or to collect as much ROI (returns on investment) as possible.
5: 学业进步 (xué yè jìn bù)
If someone in your family is currently pursing a level of education in your family, this phrase would be ideal. Meaning to wish someone "progression in their studies", 学业进步 is typically used to wish someone younger as it wouldn't be appropriate on older relatives. However, studies may not lead to a guaranteed success these days and the days moving forward but a traditional greeting would simply mean that you wish someone well.
This post may have been uploaded a day or two too late from the first day of Chinese New Year, but this event will go on for fifteen days and there may be a pileup of relatives you have yet to meet. Keep this guide handy if you need it and I wish you godspeed.
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