Many Happy Returns? Return to What?

Hello, you have A Way with Words.

Hi there, this is Rick from San Diego.

Hey, Rick from San Diego. This is Grant from San Diego. How are you doing?

Doing wonderful. I was hoping that you could help solve a family word mystery for me that’s been hanging over my family for decades.

Oh my.

That sounds threatening.

No, it’s not threatening at all. It’s very, very sweet.

So my beloved grandparents from St. Paul, Minnesota, who we officially refer to as Nana and Bapa, they passed on, but they lived into their 90s.

But for every birthday, for me and my sisters, they would always say or write in our cards, wishing you many happy returns of the day.

And we just never really understood it, and my parents didn’t either.

And so as the years went on, we were kind of too embarrassed to ask what it meant.

But we kind of felt like it was some kind of a sweet sentiment.

Yeah, just for birthdays.

Just for birthdays.

It’s a lovely sentiment, and often you hear it as just many happy returns, right?

Yes.

But less and less, Grant, I don’t usually hear that phrase anymore, many happy returns.

Yeah, it’s got an old-timey flavor to it.

But I agree that it is a sweet sentiment.

There’s something charming about it, maybe even lovely.

Yeah, and I love that they used the original form of it, many happy returns of the day.

And it’s actually very straightforward.

They’re hoping that that day returns again and again and again, that you enjoy many more birthdays.

And it’s a phrase that goes back to at least the early 18th century.

The earliest we can find is by an 18th century priest named William Tazewell, who wrote, and to wish we may see many happy returns of this day, many happy new years.

So he was talking about many, many more new years to come, that New Year’s Day returning again and again and again.

And then later, Samuel Johnson wrote, now the new year has come, of which I wish you and dear Mrs. Gastrol, many and many returns.

So again, you get this idea of that year just coming back and back again.

And that’s the idea that informs that phrase.

So what’s returning is the holiday.

The birthday comes again.

The new year comes again.

It could be Christmas comes again or an anniversary comes again.

Some special day comes again.

And in between those two birthdays or those two new years, everything is happy.

And that’s what they want for you.

Wow. Wow. I did not expect that.

That’s amazing.

Thank you so much for helping you solve this mystery for my family that’s kind of been over us for the last several decades.

Well, I would like to wish you, Martha, and Grant, many happy returns of the day.

Oh, well, thank you.

Yes, absolutely.

Thanks, Rick. We appreciate it. Take care now.

Thank you very much. Take care.

Bye-bye.

Bye-bye.

I bet there are a lot of people who, just like Rick, going, oh, because it is one of those expressions that you know, you’ve heard it, you’ve read it.

Maybe somebody wrote it in a card to you and just kind of said, oh, it’s kind of like sincerely yours or dear Martha.

We use dear and sincerely even though they might seem a little affected or outdated.

Yes, when I think of people wishing other people happy birthday online, I think more and more I’m seeing people wish them another ride around the sun or something like that.

And it’s literally the same thing, right?

Yeah.

When the earth gets back to the same place around the sun, which is another anniversary.

Yeah.

Well, there’s something in your history, something between you and your siblings, maybe, or your parents, or something between you and your kids.

A thing that you say, and you’ve passed amongst yourselves without really wondering what it meant until now.

This is the place to find out.

We can help you explore it.

877-929-9673.

Email words@waywordradio.org.