Name-days

In Slavic countries, name days are celebrated apart from birthdays. Celebrations range from cards and flowers to grand celebrations similar to birthday parties.

Such a celebration begins with attendance at the divine services marking that day (in the Russian tradition, the All-Night Vigil and Divine Liturgy), and usually with a festive party thereafter.

Before the October Revolution, the name day was considered as important, or even more important, as the celebration of the birthday. The rationale for this importance is that one's baptism is the event by which they are "born anew" in Christ. In modern times people are reviving traditions associated with it.

Here is a brief name-days calendar

Name Days (Angel's Days)

JANUARY

Ulyana - Jan 3
Anastasia - Jan 4
Evgenia - Jan 6
Klavdia - Jan 6
Lidia - Jan 19
Maria - Jan 19
Tatyana - Jan 25, celebrated like Students' Day, very popular among students
Nina -Jan 27
Ksenia -Jan 31

FEBRUARY

Inna - Feb 2
Anastasia - Feb 4
Ksenia - Feb 6
Maria - Feb 8
Anna - Feb 16
Maria - Feb 19
Valentina, Anna - Feb 23
Svetlana - Feb 24

MARCH

Marina, Kira - March 12
Antonina - March 14
Galina - March 23
Maria - March 31

APRIL

Svetlana - Apr 2
Larissa - Apr 7
Alla, Anna - Apr 8
Maria - Apr 14
Tamara - Apr 28
Irina - Apr 29

MAY

Tamara - May 2
Alexandra - May 6
Elizaveta - May 7
Irina - May 14
Varvara - May 19
Alexandra, Julia, Faina - May 31

JUNE

Julia - June 16
Valeria, Maria - Jun 20
Maria June 22
Alexandra, Antonina - June 23

JULY

Angelina - July 14
Anna - July 18
Olga, Elena - July 24
Valentina, Alevtina - July 29
Marina, Margarita - July 30

AUGUST

Maria - Aug 4
Darya -Aug 17

SEPTEMBER

Natalia - Sep 8
Elizaveta, Raisa - Sep 18
Ludmila - Sep 29
Vera, Nadezhda, Lubov - Sep 30

OCTOBER

Veronica - Oct 17
Taisia - Oct 21
Zinaida - Oct 29

NOVEMBER

Anastasia - Nov 11
Alexander - Nov 19

DECEMBER

Ekaterina - Dec 7
Varvara - Dec 17
Anna - Dec 22
Angelina - Dec 23
Marina - Dec 29