Nowruz Holiday in Azerbaijan, Turkey, and Kazakhstan
Nowruz Holiday in Azerbaijan, Turkey, and Kazakhstan

Summary/Abstract: Known as the oldest holiday in the world, Nowruz is known as the "messenger of spring" and "new day". Celebrated under hundreds of names for 5,000 years, Nowruz is one of the most important holidays among the Turkic peoples, which preserves cultural heritage. Nowruz, a symbol of abundance, blessing, love, brotherhood and friendship, is celebrated as a national holiday. All kinds of dishes, fruits, and sweets are laid out on the tables during Nowruz holiday, which is closed and widely celebrated by the Azerbaijani people. The decoration of the table is malt. Of course, in this case, flowers, water, mirrors, and gold items are not missing from the table. When food is brought to the table, candles are lit in the name of each family member. According to tradition, everyone should be at home on the day of the holiday. They should forget the sadness, be in a cheerful mood and say nice words to each other. Nowruz was accepted as a holiday in Turkey in 1995. In the Turkish calendar, a day is divided into 12 parts, and each part is called a day. Nowruz is celebrated on March 21, when day and night unite as a new year. This day and the beginning of the new year is called Yılgayak. In Kazakhstan, Nowruz is called "Nauriz". "Nauryz" means the birth of spring. But the holiday has other names. In Kazakhstan, on the occasion of Nowruz, people wear new clothes and visit each other. The main dish of the ceremony is "nauriz-koje", which includes 7 ingredients. It symbolizes the 7 elements of life. These include meat, water, salt, fat, flour, grains and milk. Kazakhs also jump over the bonfire. It should also be noted that Nowruz Holiday has been officially celebrated in Kazakhstan since 2001. On September 30, 2009, as a result of the efforts of Mehriban Aliyeva, President of Heydar Aliyev Foundation Nowruz holiday was included in the list of intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO. On February 23, 2010, at the meeting of the 64th session of the UN General Assembly, March 21 was declared "International Nowruz Day".

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