Rōmaji
akemashite omedetou gozaimasu
Type
greeting
Literal Meaning
(The last year) has ended and turned into New Year, congratulations!
Meaning
Happy New Year
Synonym
あけおめ
Antonym
良いお年を
Additional Info
あけまして comes from the verb “明ける” meaning “(something) ends and turns into a new state”, e.g 夜が明ける (night turns into day); and おめでとうございます means “congratulations”.
Among young people, it’s often abbreviated as あけおめ.
It’s usually followed by another greeting 今年もよろしくお願いします (Let’s build/keep a good relationship this year, too). It can be also abbreviated as ことよろ, but it sounds more casual/slang than あけおめ.
Example
あけましておめでとうございます。今年もよろしくお願いします。
Happy New Year! Let’s keep a good relationship this year, too!
