How to Say New Year in Hebrew: Shanah Chadashah (שנה חדשה)

Quick Answer: How to Say New Year in Hebrew

New Year in Hebrew is:

שנה חדשה

Shanah Chadashah Pronounced: shah-NAH khah-dah-SHAH

Meaning: New Year (literally "new year")

Here's the thing: Hebrew has more than one way to talk about the new year, and they mean different things. If you're wishing someone well on January 1st, you'll use different words than if you're talking about the Jewish New Year in the fall. Let's sort that out.

Two Different Celebrations

Shanah Chadashah (שנה חדשה) is the general term — "new year" in the broad sense. Israelis use it for the secular New Year, the one that falls on January 1st. Some also call that night Silvester (סילבסטר), a loanword from the West. It's the countdown, the champagne, the resolutions.

Rosh HaShanah (ראש השנה) is something else entirely. It means "head of the year" — the Jewish New Year. It falls in the fall, usually September or October, and it's one of the High Holy Days. No countdown ball. No champagne at midnight. Instead: the shofar, reflection, repentance, and the beginning of the Ten Days of Awe leading to Yom Kippur. It's biblical, liturgical, and central to Jewish life.

So when someone asks "how do you say New Year in Hebrew?" — the answer depends on which new year they mean.

The Greeting Everyone Searches For: Shanah Tovah

If you're looking for how to wish someone a happy new year in Hebrew, you've probably heard Shanah Tovah (שנה טובה). It means "good year" — and it's the greeting people actually use.

Shanah Tovah is what you say around Rosh HaShanah. You'll hear it in synagogues, at family tables, and in the streets of Israel in the fall. It's short, warm, and carries the weight of centuries. For the secular New Year, Israelis might say Shanah Chadashah Sameach (שנה חדשה שמח) — "Happy New Year" — but Shanah Tovah is the one that sticks in people's minds, and for good reason.

Our Happy New Year phrase guide breaks down both greetings and when to use each. And if you're building your holiday vocabulary, Chag Sameach (Happy Holiday) follows the same pattern — sameach means "happy," and it shows up in all kinds of festive greetings.

How to Pronounce Shanah Chadashah

The phrase שנה חדשה (Shanah Chadashah) is pronounced shah-NAH khah-dah-SHAH.

• שנה (shanah) — "shah-NAH." The "a" is like the "a" in "father," and the stress lands on the second syllable.
• חדשה (chadashah) — "khah-dah-SHAH." The "ch" is that guttural sound in the back of your throat, like the "ch" in "Bach" or "loch." The stress is on the final syllable.

The word shanah (year) appears throughout the Hebrew Bible. The word chadash (new) comes from the root ח.ד.ש — to be new, to renew. Chadashah is the feminine form, matching shanah. Lamentations 3:23 says God's mercies are "new every morning" — chadashim labekarim. Same root. Rosh HaShanah (ראש השנה) means "head of the year." Leviticus 23:24 calls it a "memorial of blowing of trumpets" — the first day of the seventh month, a Sabbath rest, the shofar sounding.

Using These Phrases

For Rosh HaShanah (Jewish New Year):

• Shanah Tovah (שנה טובה) — Good year. The classic greeting.
• Shanah Tovah u'Metukah (שנה טובה ומתוקה) — A good and sweet year. The extended version.

For the secular New Year (January 1st):

• Shanah Chadashah Sameach (שנה חדשה שמח) — Happy New Year.
• Erev Shanah Chadashah (ערב שנה חדשה) — New Year's Eve.

One more wrinkle: Exodus 12:2 says "This month shall be for you the beginning of months" — Nisan (Passover) is the first month. But Rosh HaShanah falls in Tishrei, the seventh month. The religious year begins in the fall; the month-count for festivals begins in the spring. Moses received these instructions at Sinai; the rhythm of feasts and new years has been part of Israel's life ever since.

The Bottom Line

Shanah Chadashah — new year in general. Use it for January 1st or when you're speaking broadly.

Rosh HaShanah — the Jewish New Year. The fall holiday. The shofar. The Ten Days of Awe.

Shanah Tovah — the greeting. Good year. Say it in the fall, and you're speaking the words generations have spoken at the threshold of a new year.