In Greece a child's name is rarely chosen just because it sounds nice. It usually carries a piece of family history and, almost always, a feast day: the name decides on which day of the year a person will hear “Chronia polla!” (literally “many years”), the standard Greek wish. This guide explains the main traditions and how they shape a person's name day.
Named after the grandparents
The best-known custom is to name children after their grandparents. In the classic pattern the first son is named after his father's father and the second son after his mother's father; the first and second daughters are named after the two grandmothers in the same way.
The custom goes back to antiquity. It is not always followed to the letter in today's cities, but in much of the country it is still the norm. Greeks often say that a grandchild “resurrects” (ανασταίνει, anastainei) a grandparent's name. Names therefore come back every other generation, and the same date stays a family celebration for decades: if grandfather is called Nikos (Nicholas), his grandson will also celebrate on 6 December.
In practice this means that:
- Cousins often share a name. If two brothers both name a son after their father, the cousins end up with the same name, so they are usually told apart by different diminutives, such as Giorgos and Giorgakis. See the guide to nicknames and formal names.
- The name day becomes a family affair. Grandfather and grandson, or grandmother and granddaughter, celebrate on the same day, and dropping by with good wishes often turns into a family get-together.
- Names cross between boys and girls. A grandchild is often given a grandparent's name in its feminine or masculine form, for example a Georgia named after her grandfather Giorgos.
The baptismal name
In the order of the Orthodox Church a child receives its name on the eighth day after birth, with a short prayer for the naming (ονοματοδοσία, onomatodosia). Today, mostly for practical reasons, the naming has become part of baptism: the priest pronounces the child's name as he baptises it. That is why Greeks speak of a “baptismal name” (βαπτιστικό όνομα), and in quite a few families the name is not announced until the christening.
Godparents (the nonos and the nona) have a part to play too. In Greek tradition the couple's wedding sponsor, the koumbaros or koumbara (roughly the best man or maid of honour), often becomes godparent to their first child, and in some cases it is the godparent who gives the name.
A name can also be registered today by a civil declaration at the registry office, without baptism. The name day, however, follows the name, not the ceremony: a Konstantinos celebrates on 21 May together with every Eleni (Helen), however he received his name.
How the name decides the day
Because most Greek names belong to a saint or to a feast of the Church, choosing a name also means choosing a celebration day:
- The formal and the everyday form share the same day: Ioannis, whom everyone calls Giannis (John), celebrates on 7 January like every other Ioannis.
- If a child was named after one particular saint, such as the local patron saint or a saint the family made a vow to, the family often keeps that saint's day even when the name has other dates. See names with more than one name day.
- Names with no saint of their own, including a number of ancient Greek names, are traditionally celebrated on All Saints' Sunday. See names without a saint.
Local favourites
A place's patron saint leaves a mark on local names as well. Spyros and Spyridoula are especially common on Corfu, Gerasimos on Kefalonia, Dionysis and Dionysia on Zakynthos, and Markella on Chios. Read more in the guide to the patron saints of Greek cities.
None of these customs is compulsory. They are traditions that each family keeps in its own way, which is why the same name day can mean something slightly different from one home to the next.