Forms of address

[jarka63]

Pomocy, jaki nagłówek w mailu do dyrektora współpracującej firmy? Nigdy go nie poznałam ani nie widziałam. Nie jest moim szefem, ale sporo od niego zależy. Jego tytuł to Director.
Dear Director Jones?
Dear Mr Jones?
Dear Tony?

[aga.p.p]

Dear Mr Jones.

[jarka63]

Dzięki.

[paulski]

Find out his first name and be sure to use it:
Dear Mr. Sinbad Jones,

[jarka63]

> Find out his first name and be sure to use it:
> Dear Mr. Sinbad Jones,

Are you sure? Is this some new thing? It looks and sounds awful to me.

[paulski]

Dear Mr. Jones is, most likely, the secretarial norm.
Dear Mr. Sinbad Jones telegraphs a hint of special care, which is a good thing when special treatment is meant.

> Are you sure? Is this some new thing? It looks and sounds awful to me.

New? Awful? You are kidding, aren't you?

[jarka63]

No,I'm not. It just doesn't seem like good English to me. Either you call someone by their Christian name or by Mr/Ms + surname.

[paulski]

> No,I'm not. It just doesn't seem like good English to me. Either you call someo
> ne by their Christian name or by Mr/Ms + surname.

First of all, we are talking letter salutations here; we are not calling anybody anything.

Second, the salutation Dear Mr. Firstname Lastname is fine.

Third, Mister Firstname Lastname and even Dear Mister Firstname Lastname is also OK when it comes to formally addressing someone in person.

Fourth, their is plural and someone is singular.

Fifth, I don't care what seems "like good English to you" because you have no idea what good English is supposed to be like.

[jarka63]

W końcu napisałam "Dear Mr Jones". :)
Thank you for sharing your genius, paulski. Happy Christmas!

[paulski]

Thank you, and a very Merry Christmas to you and yours too.

[republican]

Atta girl, Jarka
Merry Xmas to y'all.

[bunkum]

>Happy Christmas!

If I you asked me about what would be happy and what would be merry in late December every year, I would say that Christmas would rather be merry as New Year would rather be happy.

Happy New Year, Jarka.

[jarka63]

pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happy_Xmas_(War_Is_Over)

[bunkum]

That's an interesting tangent.

Despite pushes throughout the past two decades to move towards a more universal "Happy Holidays," Google Book's Ngram Viewer clearly shows that the Christmas-themed phrase has remained the most popular phrase of all by a good margin, even in recent years.
www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/24/merry-christmas-vs-happy-_n_800949.html#214886

We can't have Christmas any more, can we? Happy Hanukkah is absolutely OK though. Happy Holidays means little, which is the way want it.

The pushers of Happy Holidays are apparently half-succeeding; the analogy did its bit and you got infected in reverse to what was intended.
Here is what real people say:
www.antimoon.com/forum/t1468-0.htm

[perk]

Happy Holidays? I can do one better than that: Season's Greetings, everyone.

[republican]

Merry Christmas of course.
Mowimy po naszemu Wesolych Swiat Bozego Narodzenia.
Nasza Wesola Wdowka to po poprostu Merry Widow.
QED
Na zyczenia Happy Holidays od moich kolegow wiary hebrajskiej odpowiadam Merry Christmas (dostaja wysypki)

[1amazon]

Republican, you know Jews don't celebrate Christmas.

They are acknowledging the festive season and being polite wishing you Happy Holidays so why do you wish them Merry Christmas?

Would you appreciate being wished Happy Hanukkah?

What's your point? Just curious, that's all.

[republican]

See, the point is that I DO wish them Happy Hanukka and they, knowing who I am , make a point of wishing me Happy Holidays.
Got it?
Takie te ciarachy tworde, trza by stoc i walic w morde.

[1amazon]

There's nothing unusual in wishing Jewish acquaintances Happy Hanukkah.

I was curious why you wish people Merry Christmas knowing they are Jewish. Didn't see the point that.