Cranberry shortbread and honey bars, anyone? Most of my students had never tried cranberries before, so they were thrilled at the chance (although some of them decided afterwards that they didn't care for the berries' tart taste). However, all of that was only the beginning of my birthday treats… Why? Because my birthday happened to fall on the same day as one of the biggest name days celebrated across Cyprus: the name day for Ανδρέας (and those with similar names, like ‘Ανδρεα and Aνδρεάνα). Almost every Cypriot household has at least one male family member named "Ανδρέας," so you can imagine how many students and teachers brought in sweets to celebrate. And so, even though I was far from home, my birthday still felt like one big party— all thanks to serendipity, or luck, and the Cypriot name day tradition!
Honoring saints and martyrs is part of the Greek Orthodox religious tradition that is the main religion in the Greek-Cypriot community. However, name days are not unique to Cyprus. People in Greece and other European and even South American countries also celebrate name days! These people may live in regions with various Christian religious traditions, including Eastern Orthodox, Catholic, and Protestant. For example, I have friends in Sweden who come from Protestant faiths (or who are non-religious) who also celebrate name days. So you see, even for non-religious people, name days can still be part of their cultural tradition!
