Name Day Gifts: What to Give on an Orthodox Name Day

The best name day gifts honor the saint behind the name. Give an icon of their patron saint first: it goes into their icon corner and stays with them for life. Then add something they will keep close, like a cross, a prayer rope or a printed prayer with their name on it.

What is an Orthodox name day?

A name day is the feast of the saint whose name you received at baptism or chrismation. It is a day to honor that saint, to learn their life and to ask for their intercession, as an Orthodox parish in Ohio teaches. Russians say “S dnyom angela” (С днём ангела), “on your Angel’s day”; the OCA calls it “Angel Day.”

In many homes it matters more than a birthday. The Greek Archdiocese notes that in some traditions the name day, a person’s “birthday” into the Church, is kept in place of the secular birthday. An Orthodox parish in Ohio says the same of its families: it is “very traditional to celebrate a person’s Name’s Day rather than their birthday.”

How do families keep a name day?

The heart of the day is church. The OCA urges the faithful to attend church on their name day, “to receive the Holy and Life-giving Mysteries,” and to know the life of their saint. The Greek Archdiocese says that if Liturgy isn’t possible that day, go on the nearest Sunday.

At home, the saint’s icon comes out of the corner and gets flowers and a candle. The family reads the saint’s life at the table and sings the saint’s hymn, the troparion. Then come the guests:

• Greek homes keep an open house. Hosts lay out coffee and sweets, and friends drop in “carrying flowers, sweets or a bottle of wine,” as the Greek paper To Vima describes it. Phones ring all day with “Chronia polla!”
• Russian and Slavic homes plan a special meal. “Friends bring flowers and gifts, and there is usually lots of toasting and well-wishing,” says the Ohio parish.
• In church, the Greek Archdiocese notes, the person celebrating often gives: treats, an icon card, or the five loaves of the Artoklasia shared with the parish.

So a gift is welcome, but keep it in the spirit of the day. It is the saint’s feast.

Which name day gifts are best?

Start with the icon. The Greek Archdiocese notes that an icon of the patron saint is usually given at baptism or chrismation, and kept in the icon corner. A name day is the natural time to give one, or a second one for the car, the desk or a child’s room.

The patron saint’s icon (start here)

• Name-Day Gift Set, $149. Their patron saint and the Guardian Angel in a folding diptych, chosen by first name, with a stainless steel crucifix and a 50-knot prayer rope. A card gives the saint’s life and the feast day. The full gift, for a godchild, a husband or a parent who has everything.
• Patron Saint & Cross, $99. The same patron and Guardian Angel diptych with a stainless three-bar crucifix and the saint’s card, in a gift box. For a son, daughter or close friend.
• A single patron saint diptych, $69. Each is a printed (lithographed) icon under glass in a pine frame with red velvet covers, 8 × 9.5 cm (3.15 × 3.74 in) closed. For example, St Nicholas & Guardian Angel. For a colleague or a friend you see at coffee hour.
• Family Set, $249. Three patron saint diptychs, one for each name in the house, with an 8 in wooden wall crucifix. For a household, so every name day has its icon in the family corner.

Something to wear or pray with

• A cross. A plain Orthodox crucifix like the Plain Three-Bar on a 60 cm chain, $49, suits a man or woman who wears one daily. Browse all crosses.
• A saint medallion for a Michael or a George: St Michael the Archangel, $49, or St George, $49.
• A prayer rope, $24. Fifty knots of black wool, for the Jesus Prayer. A modest gift for a guest to bring.
• Printed Prayer Card with Your Names, $24. A prayer to their patron saint, printed with their name. Personalised, so final sale.

Which saint goes with which name?

These are names whose saints we carry icons of, with the feast on both calendars. The Old Calendar runs 13 days behind the civil calendar, as one OCA parish explains, so St Nicholas falls on 19 December there instead of 6 December.

A few notes. John is a name shared by many saints, so ask which St John they keep before you choose an icon. Most Johns keep St John the Baptist, 7 January (20 January), or St John the Theologian, 8 May (21 May). The OCA keeps St John the Warrior on 29 July in Greek usage and 30 July in Slavic usage, and we also carry St John the Silent, 3 December (16 December). Many Russian Alexandras keep the martyr Alexandra of Rome on 23 April (6 May) instead. Most Olgas keep St Olga of Kiev. St Olga of Alaska was glorified recently, and OCA sources still differ on her date, so ask the family.

How do I find someone’s patron saint?

Ask them, or ask a parent: the name given in church is the one that counts. You can also type a first name into our patron saint finder. Our guides on name days and how to find your patron saint cover the harder cases. If a name has no saint, the Greek Archdiocese says the person celebrates on All Saints Day, the Sunday after Pentecost.

When should I order so it arrives on time?

A name day falls on the same date every year, so you can plan ahead. Check which calendar their parish keeps first. A Nicholas in an Old Calendar parish celebrates on 19 December, not 6 December.

If you want the gift consecrated, add Consecration ($49). For a diptych, or a set holding diptychs, our priest consecrated each one before it left the workshop, filmed with its number on a card. The number is on its box and signed certificate, a vial of holy water comes with it, and the name you give is prayed for separately. Every diptych design is in stock consecrated, and it ships in the normal time. A cross or medallion is consecrated before it ships, commemorating the person you name, and orders with Consecration ship in 3–8 business days. Consecrated items are final sale.

We ship to all 50 states, DC and APO/FPO addresses, with free shipping on orders of $99 or more.

What should I write in a name day card?

Keep it short and name the saint. A few lines that work:

• “Chronia polla! May St Nicholas pray for you always.”
• “Many years, dear Michael. Happy name day.”
• “On your Angel Day, with love. May your patron keep you in his prayers.”
• For a godchild: “May your saint walk with you all your life. With love from your godmother.”

Giving to a new Orthodox Christian, or a godparent? See our guides to godparent gifts, baptism gifts and chrismation gifts, or the gift sets.