Can the term メリークリスマス be seen as politically incorrect? In some countries, some people avoid using "Merry Christmas" and instead say Happy Holidays: > Thought by some to be a politically correct alternative to Merry Christmas and/or Happy New Year when greeting people in public places due to concern over those who might not celebrate Christmas. (I'm not sure who'd be offended by Happy New Year - people who don't use a Gregorian calendar?) Is it safe to use ? If not, are there "politically correct" alternatives? Searching jisho.org for season's did get some results literally translating as season's greetings, but I expect phrases written in kanji aren't likely to be politically correct euphemisms for "Merry Christmas".

I believe most Japanese think of Christmas as a secular, commercial holiday (gift giving, christmas decorations, etc) rather than a religious celebration of the birth of Christ, so I would think that most would not even think to be offended. It might be out of place to say at a religious (Shinto or Buddhist) shrine or celebration, but I would think this would be obvious. The only reason it became politically correct to say Happy Holidays in the U.S., for instance, is due to the increased presence of religious minorities or atheists in what had been a firmly majority Christian nation. As Japan is one of the most secular nations on earth (with a Christian population of less than 2% of the general populace), I would think this consideration to be mostly irrelevant.