Namedays in Hungary - névnapkereső
We wish a very nice nameday to Botond, Mózes!
Hungarians not only have birthday, but
nameday as well (we always create reasons to celebrate). Birthdays
are usually celebrated just in immediate family. Namedays, however are
widely known and celebrated. Each acceptable first name is assigned to
one or more days of the calendar, based on religious traditions,
historical events, birthday of a famous person who had the same first
name, or on other facts. Well, in Hungary there are official first names
to choose from, - but this is really a big list with almost all of the
names that would be a real choice in a Hungarian family. But Hungarian
parents must choose a first name from that list to their child.
Namedays are celebrated in work places, among friends and - of
course - in the family. People usually give flowers, dessert or small
gifts as present. There are smaller or larger parties to celebrate this
day. On a day with a popular name you can see people with flowers on the
streets, on buses, actually everywhere. You can find today's name on the
top of this page, or you can take a look at my monthly tables below.
Another interesting fact is that in Hungary the first name is the
last and the last is the first. It means you should change your first
and last name to fit Hungarian customs. Famous composer Bela Bartok was
called Bartok Bela in Hungarian.
Finally, the name of a woman can be confusing to those unfamiliar
with this custom. The bride has a chance to choose from 3 options:
 She
may keep her maiden name in the marriage.
She
may keep her last name (that is first in English) and uses her husband's
first name. This is similar to the customs in other countries and has
become more and more popular recently.
By
the old Hungarian custom, the bride got the entire name of her groom
with a -né suffix at the end, even though she was called by her previous
first name no one could find it out from her official name.
You can find other namedays as well, just enter the nameday you
wish to find:
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