‘What on earth are Name Days?’ you ask. I have never heard of it before I met my wife and all of our Belarussian friends and family as it is not something that we celebrate here in the United States.
According to Wikipedia’s ‘Name Day’ Article:
Name Days are a tradition of attaching personal names to each day of the year, and celebrating the association of particular days with those for whom that day is named. It is common in many parts of Europe. The tradition originates from the Christian church calendar and the tradition to name children after saints, although in many countries there is no longer a connection to the church.
According to My Name Day my Name Day is July 25th. Behind the Name Days has some more background info on Name Days. Name Days are as good a reason as any to take the day off and break out the wine and (Russian) vodka. All you Americans out there take the time and surprise your partners by celebrating there name day.
