Name Days

[DonAz]

Hey Dan,
Thanks so much for the name day feature. Yulia day is coming up soon, so I bought her a present and I was richly rewarded and received major brownie points 

DonAz

[Admin]

Hey Dan,
Thanks so much for the name day feature. Yulia day is coming up soon, so I bought her a present and I was richly rewarded and received major brownie points 

DonAz

You're welcome Don. And keep an eye out because there's more than one for Yulia - May 31 and closely followed by another on June 16. No idea why. Good news is, doesn't look like any more of them the rest of the year 

- Dan

[ConnerVT]

I believe you only need recognize the one that is closest to the person's birthday...

[SANDRO43]

I believe you only need recognize the one that is closest to the person's birthday...

There is no specific "rule" on this, and it depends on cultural/religious traditions and personal preferences. In the case of the Roman Catholic Church (a tireless factory of saints  ), this subject is defined "agiography" and confusion may result from the fact that there are more than 4,400 saints and 'beati' (for a list see http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/indexsnt.htm, and in Italian http://www.santiebeati.it/), and only 365/6 days in a year (which makes for more than 10 per day).

My full name is Alessandro, and theoretically I could choose among the following 10 candidates:

Sant' Alessandro Martire 9 settembre
Sant' Alessandro Martire 12 dicembre
Sant' Alessandro Protomartire trentino 29 maggio
Sant' Alessandro di Alessandria Patriarca 26 febbraio
Sant' Alessandro di Bergamo Martire 26 agosto
Sant' Alessandro di Drizipara Martire 27 marzo
Sant' Alessandro di Sicilia Martire 1 aprile
Sant' Alessandro I Papa e martire 3 maggio
Sant' Alessandro I di Costantinopoli Vescovo 28 agosto
Sant' Alessandro Sauli Vescovo 11 ottobre   

My name day happens to be 26th August, nowhere near my birthday of 2nd February (Sant' Alessandro di Alessandria Patriarca 26 febbraio would have been more appropriate, datewise). Why was that particular day chosen by my parents? Probably because Italian calendars show that particular saint in preference to the others (why this is so, I have no idea).

[BillyB]

Good news is, doesn't look like any more of them the rest of the year 

- Dan

I think that's bad news for Don. I suspect he likes being richly rewarded. For the fun of it, make everyday "Yulia" day for Don!

[ConnerVT]

There is no specific "rule" on this, and it depends on cultural/religious traditions and personal preferences. In the case of the Roman Catholic Church (a tireless factory of saints  ),.....

Sorry, I read the masthead of this web site, and it says something like Russian Women Discussion.  When I had discussed this subject with a Russian woman I know quite well (my wife), she told me that one typically only celebrates one name day -- the one closest to the person's birthday.  I'll throw caution to the wind, and assume her information is more than likely correct.

As for what the Roman Catholic Church does, well, there are only a small minority of RW whom are Roman Catholic.  Much larger a percentage are Orthodox (as my wife and her family).  My mother in law has worked for the church diocese for 30 years now, giving my source of information even more credibility...

[SANDRO43]

When I had discussed this subject with a Russian woman I know quite well (my wife), she told me that one typically only celebrates one name day -- the one closest to the person's birthday. I'll throw caution to the wind, and assume her information is more than likely correct.

Well, you confirm what I was saying : " it depends on cultural/religious traditions and personal preferences". You are reporting the Othodox custom, I was citing the Roman Catholic situation.

Perhaps I should have written "There is no universally-applicable "rule" on this" for better clarity.