What is Persian New Year (Nowruz)?

Persians, Parsees, Kurds, Armenians, Azerbaijanis, Tajiks, Kazakhs, Uzbeks and many more cultures celebrate this special occasion and have their own traditions surrounding it.

How is Persian New Year celebrated?

For Iranians, spring really is the main focus of the 13-day celebrations. We spend much time laying and decorating a special table called ‘Haft sin’ (which means seven 'S’s) featuring many things symbolising something unique. The essential basics on the table must represent at least seven of these ‘s’ items, all of which begin with ‘s’ in the Persian language. Some of the key ones are:

Sabzeh (wheat/lentil grass) – symbolising rejuvenation and new life
Sonbol (hyacinths) - symbolising spring
Seeb (red apples) – symbolising beauty
Seer (a whole garlic bulb) – symbolising good health
Sekkeh (gold coins) – symbolising prosperity
Somagh (sumac) – symbolising the sunrise
Senjed (fruit of the oleaster tree) – symbolising love
Samanoo (a sweet, germinated wheat pudding) – symbolising fertility, power and strength
Serkeh (vinegar) – symbolising age and patience

The table must also include a mirror symbolising self-reflection, lit candles symbolising enlightenment, coloured eggs which are a symbol of fertility, a book of wisdom such as a poetry book or holy book, and a goldfish swimming in a bowl symbolising life (these days many use goldfish-shaped pottery instead of real fish).

What foods are eaten at Persian New Year celebrations?

Main meal

If you are hosting, you must always be ready to feed people at every hour of the day. The main traditional Nowruz meal consists of:

Sabzi polo – aromatic herb rice
Mahi – fish, sometimes smoked, though these days, anything goes
Kuku sabzi – Persian herb frittata
Kotlet – Persian meat patties
Salad Shirazi – a refreshing cucumber, tomato, and onion salad
Reshteh polo – rice with toasted noodles
Fresh sabzi – a mix of fresh herbs, usually mint, basil, and tarragon
Paneer – feta cheese
Naan – Persian lavash flatbread
Torobcheh – radishes
Gerdoo – fresh walnuts
Peeyazcheh – spring onions

All these are traditionally arranged on a plate, ready to share.

Nowruz snacks & sweets

If you're just stopping by before or after a main meal, then don’t expect anything less than a myriad of fresh fruits, baby cucumbers (which we eat like fruit), mixed dried fruit and nuts (especially giant pistachios, which for us are the king of nuts).

And then come the traditional Nowruz sweets called naan nokhodchi (little saffron and chickpea cookies that melt in your mouth) naan berenji (white rice cookies, delicately perfumed with rose water and sprinkled with poppy seeds) and also sohan assali, which is a Persian honey brittle studded with pistachio nut slivers. There's also shireeni e toot, little marzipan balls, rolled in sugar and studded with a pistachio sliver to resemble a white mulberry and, of course, Iranian pistachio baklava.

Seezdeh bedar

On the final day of celebrations, day 13 (which we call ‘Seezdeh bedar’) the sabzeh (wheat/lentil grass) from the haftsin table is taken with you on an outdoor picnic nearby a body of water and you throw the sabzeh grass into the water to symbolise ‘letting go’ of misfortunes and going forward in good fortune. The day is devoted to feasting together on lots of different dishes with music, laughter, dancing, games, and family and friends all spending the day outdoors. It ends with one last quirky tradition which was for unmarried girls to make a wish and tie a knot in a reed of grass in the hopes of marrying soon.

Overall, Persian New Year is the most joyous, wonderfully vibrant, food- and love-filled time and we look forward to it much in the way Christmas is anticipated and looked forward to. It really is special, and I always try and host gatherings where non-Iranians can come and experience the celebrations and see what Nowruz is all about.

What's your favourite aspect of the Persian New Year celebrations? Leave a comment below...