Nowruz recognized as an International Festival

United Nation’s General Assembly approved a resolution recognizing “Nowruz” as an international Festival. Reportedly Iran, Azerbaijan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgystan collaborated in registering “Nowruz” as an internationally recognized day.

UN National Assembly recognized Nowruz as a three-thousand-year old celebration with Iranian roots. Over 300 million people celebrate Nowruz in Asia, Indian subcontinent, Middle East, Caucasus, the Balkans, the Black Sea Basin, Eastern Africa and other regions celebrate Nowruz every year.

The UN Assembly recognizes March 21 as the International Day of Nowruz and invites “Member States that celebrate the festival to study its history and traditions with a view to disseminating that knowledge among the international community and organizing annual commemoration events.”

In Iran and Afghanistan, the calendar is based on Nowruz and March 21, first day of spring, is celebrated as New Year’s Day and is the first day of the calendar.

Last September Nowruz was also added to the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO recognizing the festival’s “affirmation of life in harmony with nature, the awareness of the inseparable link between constructive labour and natural cycles of renewal and the solicitous and respectful attitude towards natural sources of life”.