One of the best experiences I got to witness while in Tajikistan was the celebration of Nowruz. Nowruz is a holiday that originated in the old Persian Empire to celebrate the birth of the New Year and the first day on the Iranian calendar. It is one of the major holidays that is still celebrated in many parts of the Middle East and Persian-speaking countries. Tajikistan, even though they have spent many years under the oppression of the Russian Empire, still carry on this tradition every year.
Many Tajik families and Persian families during the week of Nowruz will meet either at a family member’s house or somewhere outside of town to celebrate this traditional holiday. Depending on the region of the world you live in, this holiday can last between a couple days or even a whole week. There is plenty of music, dancing, and food during the celebration of Nowruz. There are even some unusual traditions that are carried on such as having a bowl of grass called sabzeh, which is supposed to symbolize the rebirth of nature every year.
Nowruz in Tajikistan had many of these features with them including some other things that were different from how it would have been celebrated in Iran or other parts of the world. One cool thing that happened for Nowruz while we were there was the parade. The parade was a big event that caused the government to close most of Rudaki Avenue, which is the main road through the city, in order to prepare for the parade. My classmates and I did not get to see much of the parade since the park was closed for security reasons, but we did get to see some of the parade events walking down Rudaki towards the park. After the parade was officially over, we were allowed to go into the park outside the President’s Palace. Many of the people that were with us watching the parade went into the park that day with their families and spent the time celebrating the New Year with their family. It was an incredible opportunity to be able to witness all these people get together and celebrate the New Year together as a family.
Later in the week, I got to spend the weekend of Nowruz with my host family at their uncle’s house. It was great to also meet all the extended family from my host family who traveled from all around Tajikistan to come celebrate as one big family in Dushanbe. The family celebration went on for the whole day, with the men coming in first to eat and talk, then followed by the women who ate separately and later danced to the music that some of the family members played. After the festivities, many of the families had to travel back home and said their goodbyes. It was definitely an experience I will never forget and I hope someday I can come back to Tajikistan and celebrate it with my host family again.
Program: Eurasian Regional Language Program
Term: Spring 2019