January 20 is Saint Sebastian’s Day. I’d like to wish my friends named Sebastian and Sebastiano,  “Buon Onomastico!”

In Italy, your name day, i.e., the feast day of the saint for whom you are named, is as important as your birthday. So, if you have a friend named Sebastian, wish him “Auguri di buon onomastico (Wishes for a happy name day)!”

(Pictured is San Sebastiano in Castelvetrano’s Church of Saint Dominic. For more about San Sebastiano, read my post from December 19, 2016, http://experiencesicily.com/2015/01/19/san-sebastiano/).