Navruz is one of the ancient holidays of the Aryan people and has been celebrated with great glory since ancient times along with other Tajik holidays including Mehrgon, Sada and Tirgon. The meaning of Navruz in Persian means «new day», the first day, and is considered a celebration of the spring festival and the beginning of the new year. It represents the rebirth of nature, the awakening of flora and fauna. Navruz is a symbol of the renewal of nature and man, purification of the soul and the beginning of a new life. The celebration of Navruz has a long history and is one of the oldest holidays on earth. More than 3000 years ago Navruz appeared as a symbol of the beginning of the work of a farmer and was perfected throughout the centuries. The history of Navruz is connected with the rebirth of nature in spring coming after winter. It has been known since the times of Zoroastrians and was even mentioned up to the 7th century BC.
In Persian-speaking and some Turkish-speaking of Kazakhstan, Central Asia and Minor Asia, Iran, as well as Bashkirs and Tatars, Navruz is the holiday of the spring equinox and the beginning of the new agricultural year. These countries celebrate Navruz under different names that express the same meaning and represent the same culture and civilization, i.e. «Navruz, Novruz, Nooruz, Nevruz, Nauruz, Nayruz, Rabbi». It is celebrated on the day of equinox of day and night – 21 of March.
Navruz in our Tajik culture is a new day, a day of joy, a day of forgiveness of each other’s sins, a day of reconciliation. All living things are reborn at this time. Today the Tajik people celebrate with great glory the coming of this great holiday of ancestors. Navruz has its own peculiarities. Before the holiday, people clean their houses, and women prepare national dishes. One of the national dishes is sumanak, which symbolizes this holiday. On the day of holiday, people come to the celebration in their holiday clothes and prepare a celebratory table. Women decorate the holiday house with delicacies «haft sin and haft shin».
All the children are happy and hold a ceremony of turning flowers in their hands and convey the message of Navruz to others. The flowering ceremony takes place mostly in the northern regions of the country, where children give spring flowers to their relatives while singing spring songs. Families, in turn, give the children sweets. In some regions of Badakhshan, children and teenagers participate from early morning in Navruz games, such as playing arghunchak, breaking eggs, and cockfighting, and welcome it in a celebratory atmosphere.
At the same time, on the eve of the ancestral holiday Navruz, in different regions of the country, residents organize various national sports games such as wrestling, goat pulling, ball game, etc. So, nowadays this ancestral holiday is celebrated in all cities and districts of our country with great glory, and in some districts Navruz is called «New Year», «New Year», and in Badakhshan residents «Khidir Ayyom» (i.e. «Great Holiday»), «Shogun» is mentioned, which means to get a good omen.
It is worth noting that today Navruz is celebrated as an official national holiday in 11 countries:
— Afghanistan — March 21;
— Iran — from March 20 to 23;
— Azerbaijan — from March 20 to 26;
— Kazakhstan — from March 21 to 24;
— Turkmenistan — March 20-23;
— Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan — March 21;
— Albania (Spring Day) — March 20 to 23;
— Kosovo — March 21
At the same time, according to the Law of the Republic of Tajikistan “On Holidays”, March 21-24 are declared holidays.
During the period of state independence of the Republic of Tajikistan, the attention of the inhabitants of the region, especially the youth, to the revival of old traditions, i.e. Nowruz, has acquired a new glory and this holiday is celebrated as the most holy heritage of our ancestors and the holiday of purity and beauty in the atmosphere of independence and unity with great gratitude. After the globalization of Navruz, the attention of researchers has been drawn to the history, origin and philosophy of Navruz, the place of Navruz in the national culture and human civilization, the periods of development, customs and traditions of Navruz.
It should be noted that the contribution of the Founder of Peace and National Unity — Leader of the Nation, President of the Republic of Tajikistan Honorable Emomali Rahmon to the globalization of Navruz is extremely great. Thanks to the comprehensive efforts of the Leader of the nation, on September 30, 2009, Navruz was included in the list of intangible cultural monuments of humanity by UNESCO, and on February 19, 2010, at the 64th session of the UN General Assembly was declared the International Day of Navruz, which is proudly celebrated all over the world. In fact, the Founder of Peace and National Unity — Leader of the Nation, President of the Republic of Tajikistan Honorable Emomali Rahmon is an outstanding historical personality of the nation who played a significant role in globalizing Navruz.
During the period of state independence of the Republic of Tajikistan, Navruz has gained a new glory, and we Tajiks celebrate this holiday with great gratitude as the most sacred heritage of our ancestors and a holiday of purity and beauty in the atmosphere of independence and unity.
My country! Don’t inspire me,
Write to me, dear one, and fall
I want to sing a poem to your spring this day,
Blessed are you, my motherland.
You have the sun of freedom in your head,
You have your own flag, your compatriot.
You have a goal, you have zeal, you have endurance,
Happy Navruz, my homeland.
In conclusion, I sincerely congratulate the glorious people of Tajikistan on wonderful holiday of Navruz, and I wish every family in the country a rich festive dastarkhan, a calm life, happiness and prosperity.
Happy Navruz holiday, dear compatriots!
Abdulloeva S.N.,
chief specialist of the Department of Analysis
of Social Issues of the Center for strategic research
under the President of the Republic of Tajikstan
