If you think back to when you were a child, you can probably remember sitting in the living room anxiously waiting for your father to come home. You can probably imagine the excitement you felt when his car pulled into the driveway or even when you heard the garage door open and he walk in. You couldn’t wait for him to walk through the door to give him a big hug and tell him everything that had happened to you during the day.

For most children, their parents are their rocks. No matter what’s happening to you, good or bad, you knew you could always tell your dad what was going on. The best part about being able to tell your dad what was going on is that it seemed like he could magically fix everything for you. When he was a little boy, falling and scraping his knee required a kiss from Mom to make it better, but when he got a flat tire on his bike, only Dad could fix it.

No matter where you live, whether it’s in a remote town in Alaska or on the island of New Zealand, the way you see your father will be similar to the way other children see their parents. The relationship a child has with her father has even withstood the sands of time. Dads all over the world play with their children when they are young and teach them to drive when they grow up.

It is because of this relationship that a child has with his father that all over the world we celebrate Father’s Day. The date Father’s Day is celebrated in various regions of the world varies, as does the language you use to wish your dad a Happy Father’s Day. However, despite these differences, the main point is to show dads how much they mean to us.

Here’s how you’d say “Happy Father’s Day” in a variety of different languages:

  • Portuguese – Feliz dia do pai
  • Spanish – Happy Father’s Day
  • Italian – Giorno di Padre Felice
  • Polish – Wszystkiego Najlepszego Z Okazji Dnia Ojca
  • Dutch – Gelukkige Vaderdag
  • German – Alles Gute zum Vatertag
  • Spanish – Happy Father’s Day

One thing that is interesting to note is that most countries follow the American custom of celebrating Father’s Day on the third Sunday in June, but there are a handful of other countries that follow their own customs. Austria, Costa Rica and Belgium celebrate Father’s Day on the second Sunday of June. New Zealand and Australia celebrate it on the first Sunday in September. Russia does not celebrate the event on a Sunday but celebrates it on February 23 of each year. China also has a specific date for Father’s Day, which is August 8. Iran and Germany do not have a specific date to celebrate Father’s Day, instead celebrating it based on certain events. Iran follows the Islamic calendar, so they celebrate it on Rajab 13, while Germany uses Ascension Day, which comes from the Bible, to decide what date they celebrate the event.

It doesn’t matter the day you celebrate the event or the language you use to tell your father Happy Father’s Day celebrating Father’s Day is the same. The day is reserved to show our parents how much we love and respect them for all they have done for us.