A Word for Monday – 30 December 2013

It’s time to resume our Word for Monday posts with some very appropriate words for this week…

English	Slovak
New Year	nový rok
	[NOH-vee rohk]

New Year’s Day in Slovak is called “nový rok.”  But the day we typically call New Year’s Eve has a different name in Slovakia and many European countries.

English	Slovak
New Year’s Eve	Silvester
	[SEEL-vest-ehr]

You may remember from previous posts (like the one about name days, or about Mikulaš day on December 6) that each day of the year has a name associated with it, usually the name of a saint or important person in Catholic history.  New Year’s Day is named Silvester because that’s the feast day and name day of Saint Silvester, a fourth-century Pope.  So rather than calling it “New Year’s Eve,” they simply call it “Silvester.”  

Slovaks will celebrate much like we would in the U.S. – with fireworks, parties, concerts.  We hear it’s a very noisy time here in the city!