In some places your name day is more important than your birthday.

If you don’t know when your name day is, you live in a part of the world where the celebration of your given name (first name, Vorname, Christian name) is uncommon or even unheard of. That would be most of the world. But there are countries and regions in the world where a person’s name day is not only celebrated, but it is more important than their birthday.

I first learned about name days many years ago from an Austrian friend when he showed me a Namenstag-Kalender from his homeland. Back then, in the 1970s, the name day custom was still fairly common in Austria, but it was on its way out. It has pretty much faded away since then, but as you’ll learn below, there are still places where name days are very important, and still celebrated.

This well-known painting by Swedish artist Fanny Brate is titled “Namnsdag” (Name Day) and depicts preparations for celebrating the day. PHOTO: nationalmuseum.se (Wikimedia Commons)

Originally, and in some cases even today, the name day tradition was a religious practice related to a child’s baptism or christening. In the Middle Ages it was common to hold the christening on the day after a baby’s birth and record the christening date, which was also the name day, since children were given the name of the saint for that date. For example, the future religious leader and reformer Martin Luther was born on November 10, 1483. He was christened the next day, on November 11, and therefore received the name of St. Martin of Tours, whom most Germans know through St. Martin’s Day (Martin von Tours), a special day in Catholic regions.

And today? A common first name for boys in Germany is Kevin. There’s no Saint Kevin, so what happens now? (There actually is a St. Kevin, but he’s not well known. See below.) Well, since the name day (Namenstag) custom, even in predominantly Catholic regions, is rarely observed in Germany, nothing happens. And Kevin may have no idea that his name day is June 6. It’s the same for girls. Susanne gets two days on some name calendars: May 24 and August 11. (More about why that is, coming up.)

Up until the 1950s and 1960s, the name day tradition was still going strong in Austria, Bavaria, and other Catholic regions of Germany. Back when Silke was a more popular female name than Emma is now (No. 2 in 2020), Silke probably knew her name day was May 7 or June 1. No, there’s no St. Silke either, but since the Middle Ages, the church name calendars have been updated. “Silke” is in fact a northern German diminutive form of “Cäcilia,” who was a saint.

In some cases the Protestants have joined in the name day thing. Sweden, a mostly Protestant Lutheran country, is still into celebrating name days (namnsdagar). And various countries have their own name day calendars. In Latvia, for instance, where your name day is still more important than your birthday, even normal daily calendars indicate the Latvian name days. (Sweden is the same.) If they didn’t, no one would buy them. No Latvian would be dumb enough to buy such a useless calendar!

This also helps explain why some names have more than one date for that name. Let’s look at Kevin again. Why are so many German males named Kevin, an Irish name? (In 2020, Kevin was no longer even in the top 10. Ben, Paul, and Leon were the top three. But another Irish name was in 5th place: Finn/Fynn.) Kevin first gained popularity in the late 1970s because of Kevin Keegan, an English soccer (Fußball) player with the Hamburg SV team. It remained a popular name, then hit a new peak in 1991 with the release of the movie Home Alone (German title: Kevin – Allein zu Haus). The name day is based on Kevin von Glendalough, an Irish saint from the 6th and 7th centuries, who died on June 3, 618 CE. (Most saint days are on the date of their death, not birth.) Some name day calendars make June 6 the name day for Kevin.

As you can see, matching names with dates and saints is not an exact science. Names go in and out of fashion, and nailing down the origin of certain names can be tricky. Which is one reason some names have more than one date on the calendar. Also, girls often complain that they are discriminated against in the name contest, with more male names than female. Unusual or less-common names are often missing from “official” name calendars, but odd-name people should feel free to use a similar name or simply select their own name day if it’s not on the calendar. In some countries, people without an official name day traditionally celebrate their name day on Palm Sunday.

Let’s look at two German female names: Emma and Silke. Emma is a popular name in Germany these days, Silke not so much. But women of a certain age were named Silke, most likely in the 1950s, 60s or 70s. Starting with Emma, her name day could be any one of five (!) dates. That’s because there are at least five different female saints or patrons with a name related to “Emma” – if you count Hemma and Imma, older variants of Emma. If you’d like to see the details: Emma (Vorname).

Returning to Silke, I learned that the first name Silke is a familiar form (Koseform) of the Frisian name “Cäcilia,” the German “Celia” or “Gisela.” Variants are: Silka, Sylke, Cilgen. Since there are also more saints than days in the year, it should be no surprise that many names have several possible name days.

Naming Your Baby in Germany

Erin has previously written about “German Names and Bureaucracy”. Unlike in most English-speaking countries, Germany has guidelines for baby names. You can’t just pick any name that strikes you as “cute” or “clever.” One reason that name days were once so common was the Church’s effort to have noble or respected first names, especially those of saints. As described above, the christening process helped ensure that “proper” names were given to babies – and they would have proper name day.

While the names of saints are no longer in vogue, German authorities have taken over where the Church left off, controlling which names parents can choose for their children. Although this practice is far less restrictive than it was decades ago, English-speaking expats may be shocked by the limitations on first names.

Different Countries, Different Names

Although names do cross borders, especially these days, each country usually has its own name-days calendar, either official or informal. Obviously given names in Latvia are not going to be the same as in France, Germany, Finland or Greece. The Swedish official calendar ended in 1972, but a newer unofficial one was produced in 2001, and that is the one still used to this day, two decades later. There’s even an online name-day calendar for the United States, mynameday.com, but it is run by a man originally from Slovakia, another country where name days are a popular tradition. It lists about 2,000 US first names with their dates.

A Sparkasse name-day calendar for January through June 2021, with holidays in Bavaria. It lists very few modern names. PHOTO: Sparkasse Allgäu

The awareness of name days is low in most English-speaking countries, including the United States and Canada. Catholics are more likely than Protestants to celebrate their name day, or at least know when it is. But in the Orthodox Christian world, especially in Eastern Europe, name days are often very important, sometimes more than birthdays. Even in more secular, less religious countries, such as Sweden and Germany, name days have a less religious aspect, but may still be celebrated. In Austria and Catholic regions of Germany (Bavaria, northwestern Germany), name days were once more popular than today. The following two lists are not meant to be, nor are they 100 percent accurate, but offer only a rough guideline. The lists should not be considered comprehensive or complete.

Countries Where People Are Likely to Know Their Name Day
In the following countries, most people know their name day, even if they do not celebrate it. At the very least, they have heard of the name day custom and know what it is.

Austria, Czech Republic, Denmark (rare), France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, Russia, Slovenia, Switzerland.

Countries Where Name Days Are Extremely Common
In the following countries, most people know their name day and usually celebrate it. It may even be more important than birthdays. Often normal calendars list name days, along with other holidays and special days.

Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, Finland, Greece and Cyprus, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden.

Happy Name Day! • Alles Gute zum Namenstag!

Now that you’re aware of the custom, you may want to start celebrating your own name day, even if only in private. You don’t need to go all out with cake and a card – unless you want to. Enjoy!

– HF