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BIRTHDAY.—In Mat_14:6 and Mar_6:21 this word represents the Gr. ôὰ ãåíÝóéá in the account of the king’s (Herod Antipas) feast to his nobles, at which John the Baptist was condemned to death. It has been suggested, however, though without much acceptance, that the anniversary referred to was that of Herod’s accession, not strictly that of his birth. ÃåíÝóéá , which in Attic Greek means ‘the commemoration of the dead,’ is in the later language interchangeable with ãåíÝèëéá (birthday celebrations), and there seems no reason why the translation of Revised Version NT 1881, OT 1885 and Authorized Version should not be right (see Swete on Mar_6:21, and Hasting's Dictionary of the Bible , s.v.). The custom of observing the birthday of a king was widely spread in ancient times (cf. Gen_40:20, 2Ma_6:7; Herod. ix. 110).
For the question of the date of our Lord’s birth, and the authority for the traditional 25th December, see art. Calendar.
C. L. Feltoe.