A special national holiday on July 17 — Andrey Naliva: history, traditions, omens

Every year on July 17, Orthodox believers honor the memory of St. Andrew of Crete, the Venerable Prince Andrew Bogolyubsky and the Venerable iconographer Andrei Rublev. In the national calendar, the date was named Andrei Naliva. In 2026, the holiday falls on a Friday. Read about its history, traditions, signs and strict prohibitions in the Izvestia article.

What is the church holiday on July 17th?

St. Andrew of Crete was born in the second half of the 7th century in Damascus into a Christian family. According to church tradition, he did not speak during the first years of his life. But at the age of seven, after receiving communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ, he found speech.

From that moment on, he began to diligently study the Holy Scriptures and theology, and at the age of 14, Andrew went to the monastery of St. Sava the Consecrated near Jerusalem and took monastic vows. At the monastery, he earned the respect of the brethren for his education, gentleness and austerity of life. In 679, he took part in the Sixth Ecumenical Council, and later, under Emperor Justinian II, he was appointed Archbishop of Crete.

Andrei of Crete went down in the history of the church as an outstanding preacher and hymnographer. His name is associated with the development of the canon as a special form of church poetry. The saint composed canons and hymns for major church holidays, including the Nativity of Christ. His most famous work— The Great Canon of Penance, is read during Lent. This service is popularly known as "St. Andrew's standing".

Another saint, whose memory the faithful honor on July 17, the venerable Prince Andrei Bogolyubsky— lived in the 12th century, was the son of Yuri Dolgoruky and the grandson of Vladimir Monomakh. Since his youth, he was distinguished by piety and courage, participated in campaigns, helped the poor and sought to strengthen the Vladimir-Suzdal land.

In 1155, the prince brought from Vyshgorod a miraculous image of the Virgin Mary, which later became famous as the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God. According to legend, not far from Vladimir, the horses carrying the shrine stopped and did not want to go any further. Andrey took this as a sign, stayed at the place for the night and saw the Mother of God in a dream. After that, he ordered the shrine to be moved to Vladimir, and a church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary was built on the site of the apparition.

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Andrei Bogolyubsky made Vladimir one of the most important political and spiritual centers of Northeastern Russia. Temples were built under him, the principality developed, and the idea of an independent Vladimir center was strengthened. The prince died in 1174 as a result of a conspiracy and was later glorified among the faithful.

The third Andrey, who is remembered on July 17, is the Reverend Andrei Rublev. Little is known about the early years of his life. It is believed that he was born around 1360, took monastic vows and was associated with the Spaso-Andronikov Monastery in Moscow.

Andrey Rublev became one of the main masters of Russian icon painting. He participated in the painting of the Annunciation Cathedral of the Moscow Kremlin, worked in Vladimir and the Trinity-Sergius Lavra. His most famous work, the Trinity icon, was created for the Trinity Monastery.

Traditions of the national holiday Andrey Naliva on July 17th

In Russia, by July 17, winter bread was "filled" with grain, and oats ripened, so St. Andrew's Memorial Day was named Andrei Naliva, or St. Andrew's Day. "The winters have come in floods," the peasants said, feeling the proximity of the harvest.

The believers began the morning with a visit to the temple. They prayed to St. Andrew for help in their labors, family health, home protection, and mental clarity. After the service, the peasants returned to their current affairs. We tried to spend the day working, keeping a positive attitude. According to beliefs, hard work for Andrei Naliva produced quick results if a person was not lazy, did not indulge in anger and despondency and kept his thoughts in order.

The men inspected the winter crops, checked how the grain and oats were being poured, and continued harvesting hay. Rain on Andrey was considered a good sign, he was supposed to water the land, strengthen the crops and help the future harvest. The dry and hot weather, on the contrary, made us worry about bread and livestock feed.

Special attention was paid to oats on this day. Our ancestors considered it a simple, unpretentious, but reliable culture. People used to say, "Oats can grow through a bast." The housewives cooked oatmeal porridge in the morning. Whole grains were steamed in the oven for a long time to make them soft and satisfying. The porridge was stirred clockwise, it was believed that otherwise it would lose its benefits. In addition to porridge, oatmeal stew and oatmeal pastries were prepared, and in well-to-do homes they could bake oatmeal with onions, sheep giblets and spicy herbs.

Oats were used not only for human food, but also for horse feed. Therefore, before sitting down to the table, the peasants tried to feed their horses to their heart's content. In the midst of the summer work in the field, they bore most of the burden.

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Unmarried girls on the holiday arranged fortune-telling, and also cooked oatmeal jelly, which should be drunk to the last drop, thinking about the imminent wedding. The ancestors believed that such a simple ceremony would help attract a betrothed and bring marriage closer.

Also, on July 17, it was customary to conduct rituals to purify the dwelling from dark forces. To do this, the women collected St. John's wort, dried it, and lightly fumigated the house with it. The pungent herbal smell was supposed, according to legend, to expel evil spirits.

Dreams on the night of Andrei Naliva were considered prophetic, they tried to remember them in order to determine what to expect from the future.

What not to do on the holiday Andrey Naliva

In Russia, St. Andrew's Day was associated with a number of prohibitions, the main of which concerned important initiatives in the morning. The ancestors believed that things started on the morning of July 17 without preparation and calm calculation would not go as planned, and would bring no benefit, but unnecessary trouble.

What else you can't do on July 17th:

• Fuss and hurry — haste will lead to mistakes, injuries and quarrels.;
• make trade deals in the morning — buying or selling will turn into a loss;
• to lend or borrow money — such a debt will entail new financial problems, it will be difficult to repay it, and the relationship will deteriorate.;
• Being jealous of a loved one is dangerous for relationships on this day.;
• quarreling with your spouse or family — the conflict will disrupt the peace of the home for a long time.;
• Leaving children alone can make them sickly and fearful.;
• severely punish children — after that, kids can become withdrawn and anxious.;
• coming to visit without a gift — greed will lead to the loss of friends and deterioration of health;
• buying something unnecessarily — things purchased on a whim can quickly deteriorate.

Folk signs for July 17th

On Andrei Naliva, the peasants closely watched nature, the sky, birds and plants in order to find out by signs what the end of summer would be like, how early autumn would be and how harsh winter would be.

• rain — for a good harvest and good health;
• heavy thunder — thunderstorms and hail are possible;
• the sky is overcast — for good weather in the coming days;
• chickens hide from the first drops of rain — the storm will drag on;
• high clouds are moving smoothly — the next few days will be warm;
• The leaves on the trees began to turn yellow — autumn will come early;
• there are a lot of berries in the forest — the winter will be harsh;
• oats fill up well — it promises to be a satisfying year.;
• The sun came out quickly after the rain, and the weather will improve soon.

Earlier, Izvestia reported on the signs and strict prohibitions of the special Nettle Conspiracy holiday.