Celebrating the new year in another culture is special. And, if you’re in a relationship with a Sri Lankan, there’s nothing more special to them than to hear you say Happy New Year wishes in Sinhala.
Love indeed speaks in many languages. When it speaks Sinhala, learning it and the culture shows how much you care. So here are some Sinhala New Year phrases we’ve gathered to build bonds that will last forever.
Say Your Happy New Year Wishes In Sinhala With These Top 3 Phrases
The rest of the world gears up for New Year celebrations starting in December, but not for the Sri Lankans. The Sinhala New Year is celebrated in April based on the auspicious times.
Hence, you cannot simply say your New Year greetings at the stroke of midnight. But, you can share your Happy New Year wishes in Sinhala with emphasis on happiness, health, and prosperity to anyone you speak with:
1. May You Have A Happy New Year – Suba Aluth Avuruddak Wewa (සුබ අලුත් අවුරුද්දක් වේවා)
This is the most common version of the Sinhala New Year greeting, as it can be used with everyone, from your partner’s grandmother to their youngest cousin.
2. May You Have A Joyful New Year – Priithimath Nawa Wasarak Wewa! (ප්රිතිමත් නව වසරක් වේවා)
This phrase is a slightly more formal version of greeting Happy New Year in Sinhala. With the word priithimath carrying hints of deep, lasting joy, it’s best used when showing extra respect to your partner’s family, especially to the elders.
3. New Year Good Wishes – Nawa Wasara Subha Pathum (නව වසර සුභ පැතුම්)
Use this Sinhala New Year greeting if you want to be more versatile. Perfect for conversations, greeting cards, or text messages where you’re unsure which formality level to use. It’s neither too casual nor too stiff. Just right.
Other Ways To Say Your Happy New Year Wishes In Sinhala
Now that you know the most common Happy New Year wishes in Sinhala, you can be more at ease saying them to your partner’s family and friends, even to the point of customizing them to be more personal.
| English | Sinhala | Transliteration | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Happy New Year! (alternative) | සුබ නව වසරක් වේවා | Suba Nava Vasarak Wewa! | |
| Happy New Year to you and your family | ඔයාටයි ඔයාගේ පවුලටයි සුබ අලුත් අවුරුද්දක් වේවා | Oyaa-tayi oyaage pauwlatayi Suba Aluth Avuruddhak Wewa! | |
| May you have a peaceful and joyful New Year | ඔබට සැප සාම පිරි අලුත් අවුරුද්දක් වේවා | Obata Sapa Saman Piri Aluth Avuruddak Wewa | |
| Wishing a kind hearted New Year | අලුත් අවුරුද්දක් සමග සොඳුරු සිතක් | Aluth Avuruddak Samaga Sonduru Sitha | |
| Happy New Year my love | සුබ අලුත් අවුරුද්දක් වේවා මගේ ආදරේ | Suba Aluth Avuruddak Wewa Mage Adare | |
| This New Year is beautiful because of us | මේ අලුත් අවුරුද්දේ අපි දෙක හරි ලස්සනයි | Me Aluth Avurudde Api Deka Hari Lassanai |
Extra tip: Learning the Sinhala alphabet can help when greeting a ‘Happy New Year’ in Sinhala in a card or text message.
How Do You Say Happy New Year Wishes In Sinhala?
The standard way of saying Happy New Year wishes in Sinhala is Suba Aluth Avuruddhak Wewa! (සුබ අලුත් අවුරුද්දක් වේවා!), which translates to “May you have a happy new year.”
Must-Remember Sinhala New Year Vocabulary
Learning a few key Happy New Year wishes in Sinhala not only makes the New Year merry and bright, but also heartfelt. Apart from the ones mentioned above, here are other easy-to-use Sinhala phrases and vocabulary related to the New Year.
| English | Sinhala | Transliteration | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Happy and Joyful New Year! | සුබ සැප අවුරුද්දක් වේවා | Suba Sapa Avuruddhak Wewa | |
| Same to you! | එසේම වේවා | Esema Wewa | |
| Good/Auspicious | සුබ | Suba | |
| New | අලුත් | Aluth | |
| Year | අවුරුද්ද | Avurudda | |
| Happiness | සැප | Sapa | |
| Prosperity | සම්පත් | Sampath | |
| Peace | සාම | Saman | |
| May it be (wish ending) | වේවා | Wewa | |
| May you live long | ආයුබෝවන් | Ayubowah! | |
| May you have happiness and peace | ඛෙම සිතුවම් | Khema Sithuwam | |
| Traditional drum played during New Year celebrations | රබණ | Raban |
Pro Tip: Mix and match Sinhala words and phrases for the New Year, like Suba (good) with Sapa (happiness) to customize your wishes. Just make sure to start greeting the elders first to show respect, a big part of Sri Lankan culture.
Connect Better With Your Partner And The Fam With These Sinhala New Year Tips
Now that you nailed down your Suba Aluth Avuruddhak Wewa!, it’s time to make a deeper connection with your beloved’s family during the Aluth Avurudu by observing the following:
- Avoid making premature Sinhala New Year wishes or any disruptions: Never say your greetings before the New Year instant (post-nonagrahana pause) because it invites bad luck. Let your partner’s family clocks guide you. Don’t interrupt elder blessings or the pansil (prayers); stand by quietly instead. And if they’re sensitive to loud sounds, skip the firecrackers.
- Greet at the right nekath: Similar to the Chinese, Sri Lankans also believe in auspicious timings. As such, wait for the official New Year announcement from the temple or the radio to say Suba Aluth Avuruddhak Wewa! with a warm smile and anjali mudra (joined hands).
- Elders first and foremost, always: Once you arrive at your partner’s home, make sure to offer kiribath (milk rice) or some sweets like kavum to the grandparents, aunties, and uncles while saying Oyaa-tayi Suba Aluth Avuruddhak Wewa! Pair your wishes with a slight kneel or bow to further show respect and strengthen ganu denu (family bonds).
- Actively join family rituals: Belief in auspicious times is often paired with certain rituals. Be an active participant in the sarra (oil anointing) or offer to light the hearth or stir the kiri ithirima in their new clay pots. Bask in the family’s joy over the new year by sharing the first meal facing the auspicious direction, which is either south or east, and play traditional games like olinda keliya (pillow fights) or drumming the raban with enthusiasm.
Be it in words or actions, follow your partner’s lead to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings.
Frequently Asked Questions About Happy New Year Wishes In Sinhala
How To Wish For Sinhala New Year Using English Text?
To greet a Happy New Year in Sinhala using English text, you can use the phonetic translations like Suba Aluth Avuruddhak Wewa! for “Happy New Year!” and Oyaa-tayi oyaage pauwlatayi Suba Aluth Avuruddhak Wewa! for “Happy New Year to you and your family!” You can then respond with a heartfelt Esema Wewa! (Same to you!).
When Should I Say Happy New Year Wishes In Sinhala?
The best time to say Happy New Year wishes in Sinhala is after the official New Year time in April, around April 13-14. This is after the nonagrahana (neutral transition period between the old and new solar years) and nekath (auspicious timing) for prosperity.
It usually starts after midnight (confirmed by the local temple or radio announcements) or early morning when Sri Lankan families eat kiribath (milk rice), their first meal.
How Do Sri Lankans Celebrate The New Year?
Sri Lankans celebrate Aluth Avurudu (New Year) with astrological traditions like kiri ithireemȧ (boiling milk) for prosperity and preparing kiribath as their first meal.
Other traditions include anointing oils, exchanging coins as gifts, playing games like tug-of-war, and enjoying sweet treats like kavum and kokis.
This day then concludes with fireworks, drumming of the raban, and visiting the elders for their blessings, all timed precisely by auspicious nekath.
More Than Just A Greeting: New Year Wishes In Sinhala
Now that you have learned how to say Happy New Year wishes in Sinhala, you become an active participant in the celebration. You can now create more wonderful memories using phrases like “May You Have A Happy New Year” – Suba Aluth Avuruddak Wewa (සුබ අලුත් අවුරුද්දක් වේවා) and “May You Have A Joyful New Year” – Priithimath Nawa Wasarak Wewa! (ප්රිතිමත් නව වසරක් වේවා).
We also went over some extra Sinhala vocabulary related to the new year, and gave you some tips to celebrate the occasion in Sri Lanka with your beloved and their family, getting to know traditions like eating kiribath (milk rice) and drumming the raban.
Take this opportunity as well to say I Love You in Sinhala to show how much your partner and their family mean to you in the years to come.
Speak Your New Year Wishes With Your Heart Using Ling
Want to memorize more than just Happy New Year wishes in Sinhala? With the help of Ling, you can learn how to say any word and phrase in Sinhala most naturally and confidently with the right emotion, just like how you hold normal conversations with your partner.
What sets the Ling app apart is its short and interactive lessons. In as little as 5-10 minutes, you can slowly build your vocabulary from the most practical Sinhala phrases to advanced ones. It even has a speech recognition feature that gives instant feedback to help you sound more natural. And, with the Dialog feature, you can practice real Sinhala conversations without fear of making mistakes.
Want to connect better with your partner during the next family video call? Download the Ling app and start learning Sinhala in as few as 7 days.
