Until Jono Ament was 7 years old, he thought the whole world stopped on Dec. 25 for the sole purpose of celebrating his birthday.

“I was kind of na’ve and stupid,” said Ament, who is Jewish. “I was wondering what was going on. Then my parents told me there’s this holiday called Christmas and that’s why everything’s closed.”

The sophomore biological resources engineering major is one of dozens of students who have grown up celebrating their birthdays on one of the most festive days of the year.

Junior electrical engineering major Peter Russo said he knew his Dec. 25 birthday was a special day for others, although he didn’t always know the date.

“I knew it was Christmas before I knew the date of my birthday,” he said. “I would always tell people, ‘Christmas,’ because I didn’t know the date.”

Like many students with Christmas birthdays, Russo said his family dealt with the overlap by starting a tradition of celebrating Christmas in the morning and his birthday in the evening. His parents made sure he got extra gifts, though other gift-givers often made do with one dual-purpose gift.

“That’s probably just me being greedy,” he said. “The only people I really expect gifts from are my parents, and they always take care of it. If I get two [from anyone else], that’s cool; if I get one at all, that’s cool too.”

Ament, whose birthday coincides with Hannukah about every other year, said his parents also had a system to compensate.

“My brothers get a small Hannukah gift, and I’ll get a huge gift that’s double what they get,” he said. “But they know it all equals out.”

Junior cell biology and molecular genetics major Emily Seay said the biggest advantage of her Christmas birthday is getting to spend every birthday with her extended family.

She also said getting to give gifts on her birthday in addition to receiving them makes the day more special rather than diminishing it.

“I really enjoy giving to others, so if anything, it makes my birthday better to make everyone else happy around me,” she said.

Freshman journalism major Omar Mohammed, who is Muslim, said his Christmas birthday meant he never felt excluded from getting gifts even though his family didn’t celebrate the holiday.

“I always knew other kids were talking about what they were getting,” he said.

On the other hand, Mohammed and Ament pointed out that the date has its disadvantages, such as not being able to celebrate with friends.

“I just stay in and do nothing,” Ament said. “We usually end up getting Chinese food for my birthday [because everything else is closed], and I hate Chinese food.”

Russo said while he misses seeing his friends on his birthday, having nothing to do isn’t always a bad thing.

“I kind of like it because I’ve never had school on my birthday, never had obligations on my birthday,” he said. “It’s always a day I can relax and spend time with my family.”

Seay said that, despite its disadvantages, she wouldn’t trade her Christmas birthday for any other date.

“It’s hard for me to say if I would want it a different way,” she said. “I do know it’s something special. I know no one is going to forget my birthday.”

Contact reporter Andrew Schaefer at newsdesk@dbk.umd.edu.