In Ireland, we celebrate Mother’s Day in March, unlike in the US, which celebrates the occasion in May. So, with the American Mother’s Day celebration just around the corner, we thought it would be helpful to teach you how to say Happy Mother’s Day in Irish/Gaelic, so you can make the occasion a bit more Irish.
Many of our customers are on the hunt for a meaningful Mother’s Day gift. So a greeting card wishing the mom in your list a Lá na Máithreacha Sona duit will add an extra layer of meaning to your gift-giving. Ready to learn how to say Happy Mother’s Day in Irish?
Happy Mother’s Day in Irish – How to say and how to pronounce it?
To wish Happy Mother’s Day in Irish, you would say Lá na Máithreacha Sona duit, pronounced “Law na Maw-her-aka Sun-a ditch”.
If you translated the sentence word by word, the translation would be close to: Day of the Mothers Happy for You. For better understanding, we’re breaking down each word, with pronunciation and position in the sentence.
Lá pronounced law: It translates to “Day”. In Irish, modifiers/possessors come after nouns. Therefore, this should be the first word of the sentence.
Na pronounced na: It translates to “of the”. Irish language does not use “of” to indicate possession. Instead, it uses ends to describe who owns something.
Máithreacha pronouced Maw-her-aka: this is the plural form of the word máthair which translates as mother.
Sona pronounced sun-a: it comes from old Irish which translates into prosperous, fortunate, lucky. In this context, it means happy.
Duit pronounced as ditch: It translates to/for you. Do (second-person singular) inflection: to/for you in its singular form.
So Let’s recap, Lá na Máithreacha Sona duit (Law na Maw-her-aka Sun-a ditch). Are you ready to say it now?
You may also enjoy reading: Learn how to say ‘I Love You’ in Irish like a Pro
Celebrating Mother’s Day in a different way
There are many ways to make your mom’s day extra special: flowers, mother’s Irish jewelry, or other traditional Irish gifts. This year, you can add a finishing touch by writing a greeting card with good wishes in Irish. We’re sure it will make this “Mothering Sunday” extra special with very little.
In the end, the most important thing for our moms is for us to be happy. And, of course, spend the day with their loved ones. So use your newly acquired Irish vocabulary and Lá na Máithreacha Sona duit to you!
Slán go fóill