Many people know that “Name Day” and “Birthday” are two different holidays, not only in meaning, but most often in terms of dates. We offer you to understand in detail how the days of veneration of various saints are distributed in the church calendar, as well as how to determine when to celebrate Name Day in 2024 for you.
Angel Day
Name days are also often called "Angel's Day" , because this holiday is celebrated on the date when the church calendar falls on the day of memory of the saint, whose name the person was named at Baptism.
The easiest way is to determine what date the name day falls on in 2024 for the owners of the names included in the Saints. For this category of people, a simple rule applies - Angel Day will be the date of commemoration of the saint of the same name, as close as possible to the date of birth.
Important! Despite the fact that there may be several days in a year when the deeds of a saint are remembered in Orthodox Temples, name days are celebrated only once a year.
It is more difficult to determine the date on which the holiday falls if the name is not in the church book or the parents gave the child two names at the same time:
- mundane - which a person will be called in everyday life;
- church - at the Sacrament of Baptism.
It often happens that growing up, a person does not remember this fact. In this case, the name day can be considered the day of the sacrament of Baptism.
If a person does not know the date of his Baptism, which is also not uncommon, then the Church allows you to choose a patron from among the saints, whose icons are in the frequently visited Temple and whose prayer has a special spiritual meaning for a person.
Calendar of names for Saints in 2024
Saints - a church book that contains a complete list of saints and great martyrs with the dates of their veneration, by which you can choose Christian names for a child (boy or girl) taking into account the date and month of birth, as well as determine the day of celebrating your Name Day (Angel Day).
January
In January 2024 Namedays will be celebrated by the owners of the following names:
February
In February 2024, the Saints prescribe to celebrate Name Days for those who bear the following Christian names:
March
If your birthday or Epiphany falls on the first month of spring, then we suggest finding the name of your patron saint in this list:
April
Born in the month of April, according to Christmastide, they can bear the names of such saints, depending on the date.
May
At the end of spring, the Orthodox calendar of names by date of birth prescribes naming boys and girls like this:
June
For those whose birth or baptism falls in June, Orthodox Saints also have many name options, from popular today to Old Church Slavonic and sounding very unusual.
July
In the 7th month of 2024, saints and great martyrs who bear the following names will be venerated:
August
If you have to give birth at the end of summer, you should take a closer look at such beautiful Orthodox names (adults can find their Angel Day on the list):
September
The first month of autumn is rich in sonorous popular male and female names.
October
In October, Namedays will be celebrated by people who bear such Orthodox (or consonant with them) names:
November
November names are also interesting and varied, because those who plan to give birth to a baby or baby in the last month of autumn will definitely have plenty to choose from:
December
For December 2024, the Orthodox calendar sets the days of saints who bear the following names:
How is Nameday celebrated?
On our birthday, we invite guests, arrange parties and set tables. But the Name Day is a slightly different day, which, according to Christian traditions, should not be so noisy, because the focus is not so much on the birthday man himself, but on his Guardian Angel, or rather the saint whose name he bears.
On Angel Day, Name Day, a person is supposed to:
- visit the Temple, take communion;
- pray to your saint (with gratitude for his protection and support, as well as asking for help);
- bake a birthday cake and be sure to invite godparents to the meal.
Important! If you were invited not to a birthday, but specifically to a Name Day, then you need to choose a gift of spiritual content - an icon, a Bible (adult or child), a cross or an icon in a pendant, thematic literature.
If you know that a person celebrates on a certain day of the Name Day, but at the same time, you did not receive a personal invitation, you can congratulate the birthday man with a beautiful postcard:
What not to do on Angel Day?
For a long time, our ancestors adhered to a number of prohibitions, one way or another connected with the Name Day. It is believed that this date is not allowed:
- hurry and fuss;
- be late (especially for worship);
- complain about life, he alth, luck and generally discuss your problems with someone;
- kissing sleeping babies (children under 3 years old).
Conclusion
And how do you celebrate your Name Day? Do you know when (on what date) your saint is venerated and why your parents chose such a patron for you? We invite you to share your experience or interesting story in the comments.
