"Navruz" - Spring holiday
Navruz: the date, history, traditions, and customs of the holiday. It is celebrated on the day of the vernal equinox.
More than 300 million people worldwide annually celebrate Nowruz, a festival celebrating the arrival of spring and the rebirth of nature. The term, is translated from Persian, literally means "new day". The holiday has a centuries-old history, and since 2010, it has been included in the United Nations (UN) calendar. How is Nowruz celebrated by different nations.
What is Navruz?
Navruz (also known as Novruz, Nauruz, Nooruz) is a holiday celebrating the arrival of spring and the beginning of a new year according to the solar calendar. Currently, the date is not associated with a specific religion. The holiday is celebrated by representatives of Iranian and Turkic group of people. Specifically the New Year according to the astronomical solar calendar begins with Nowruz. The holiday is an international, tend to be in Azerbaijan, Albania, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Macedonia, Tajikistan, and other countries.
History of Navruz
Nowruz is an ancient holiday with roots dating back to Zoroastrianism, the ancient religion in Central Asia , which was based on the opposition of good and evil, the dark and light principles of the universe. There is no precise information about the origins of Nowruz. According to legend, the founder of the holiday was the mythical Persian Shah Jamshid. According to one version, he declared the day of his coronation a holiday. According to another, Jamshid named Nowruz the day when the Earth completes its orbit around the Sun.
The origins of Navruz date back to the pre-Islamic period. It is believed that its celebration dates back to the Achaemenid dynasty, which came to throne in the sixth century BC. The first written mention of Nowruz appeared much later, in the second century AD. Until the mid-seventh century, Nowruz was the main holiday of the year. On this day, rulers interacted with the people, distributed money, and could have forgiven the prisoners. Ritual fires burned everywhere, and fire-worshiping ceremonies were held in temples: it symbolized the victory of light over darkness. Candles were lit in homes, and feasts were prepared. The celebrations lasted for six days. The first five were public holidays. The sixth day was reserved for the ruler: the king celebrated Nowruz with his entourage.
After the establishment of Islam in 650, the tradition of celebrating Nowruz remained. Turkic peoples continued to celebrate this date, and in Central Asia, Navruz was considered the official New Year until the second third of the 19th century.
Traditions and Customs
Preparations for Navruz began in advance. There's a belief that if the holiday is celebrated with great pomp, the entire following year will be prosperous. A few days before Navruz, it's customary to clean the house, receive guests, visit friends, thank the relatives, and ask for their forgiveness. The festive table must include the attributes of the holiday—symbols of abundance and fertility. They all begin with the letter "S" in the Persian alphabet: greens (sabza), grape vinegar (sirko), apple (seb), branches of the jida tree (sanjid), raisins (sabzeh), barberries (sumac), and garlic (sir). In homes, as has been done since ancient times, candles are lit.
Many people, including Uzbeks, Azerbaijanis, Iranians, and Tajiks, dye eggs for Navruz, symbolizing the birth of life. The most common color is green, symbolizing the rebirth of nature and life in general. Dying eggs with onion skins to achieve a reddish hue is also popular. Eggs are must-have thing on every single holiday table. In Azerbaijan, they are placed on a mirror: this custom signifies the end of the outgoing year and the start of a new one.
In Dagestan, during the holiday, children went door-to-door, congratulate their friends, sang songs, and received treats—flatbreads with nuts and dried fruit, and other delicacies. After the communal feast, the entertainment began: songs, dances, competitions, and games, including breaking boiled eggs. In the evening, the bravest Dagestani peoples jumped over bonfires.
What to Cook for Navruz?
For Navruz, it's traditional to bake flatbreads made from grains and legumes: beans, peas, corn, rice, lentils, wheat, barley, and beans. One of the main Uzbek traditional dishes of the holiday is sumalak, a treat made from sprouted wheat. The sprouts are ground and then cooked with flour and butter.
Bashkirs, Kazakhs, and Tatars cook a multi-grain porridge made from various grains and prepare baursaks—pieces of dough fried in a generous amount of oil. Baursaks can be made directly from sweet dough or drizzled with honey after the dish is cooked.
Kazakhs and Kyrgyz cook "nauryz kozhe" for the holiday—a rich soup with meat, grains, and animal fat, with the addition of milk or kefir.
Azerbaijanis celebrate their holiday by preparing "shakh-plov" with lamb and dried apricots. The dish is soaked in melted butter or saffron infusion and served wrapped in several sheets of lavash. Fish baked in thin dough is often served: it is gutted and stuffed with walnuts, chestnuts, and dried fruit.
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Plov isn't just a meal!
In Uzbekistan, plov is more than a meal; it is a ceremony. It is cooked for weddings, funerals, and births, as well as on Thursdays in memory of the deceased. Eating plov together represents familial and community solidarity. Uzbekistan has a saying that "plov unites people, strengthens relationships, and gives life."
Plov has become a symbol of national identity, hospitality, and family traditions. Plov is a staple of Uzbek life, from regular meals to weddings and religious holidays. In 2016, UNESCO designated Uzbek plov as an intangible cultural property of humanity.
Today, plov is an essential aspect of Uzbek Every year, Uzbekistan celebrates the "Uzbek Plov Festival," which has chefs from several areas showcasing their distinctive recipes. In 2017, the world's largest plov, weighing 7,360 kg, was prepared in Tashkent, setting a Guinness World Record.
Plov is more than just a dish. It's a symbol of the Uzbek soul, a reflection of its history, culture, and traditions. When traveling through Uzbekistan, be sure to try plov in different regions—each tells its own unique story through its flavor and aroma.
Experience the flavor of Uzbekistan—go on a culinary journey and try authentic plov where it originated.
Discover the culinary heart of Central Asia!
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