2024 - 2025 FACTORY student led: Nowruz @ DAI!

A 3,000-year-old tradition, Nowruz ushers in a season of rebirth. It marks the first day of the year in the Iranian calendar and is otherwise referred to as the spring equinox. It is celebrated by over 300 million people worldwide, including ethnic groups across present-day Afghanistan, Iran, Kurdistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and elsewhere. Transcending borders and cultures, often in defiance of state proscription, observance of Nowruz is an expression of hope and renewal after a long, dark winter. Iranians set a table of symbolic items in their homes, called Haft-sīn ( هفت‌سین) which directly translates to seven s’. 

Join us to enjoy music, sweets, and fortune telling around our Haft-sīn to welcome and celebrate Nowruz. It is often customary for Iranians to read Hafez or the Quran during this holiday. The fal-e hafez is a practice of divination by relying on random passages from a book or text. We invite you to bring your own cultural approaches to fortune telling or strategies for conjuring hope. No matter how dark the world can get, the spring will always return. 

The main seven items beginning with s in Farsi are:

Sabzeh (سبزه) sprouted wheatgrass, a symbol of growth
Samanū (سمنو) wheat pudding, a symbol of strength
Senjed (سنجد) oleaster, dry lotus tree fruit, a symbol of love
Serkeh (سرکه) vinegar, a symbol of age and patience
Sīb (سیب) apple, a symbol of beauty
Sīr (سیر) garlic, a symbol of health
Somāq (سماق) ground sumac berries, a symbol of sunrise

Some other items beginning with s that are also often used are:

Sāʿat (ساعت) clock, a symbol of time
Sekkeh (سکه) coins, a symbol of prosperity
Sonbol (سنبل) hyacinth, a symbol of spring

Haft Seen Zine by Hanna Karraby

Nowruz holidays last 13 days. The final day is named Sizdeh Bedar (سیزده‌بدر) also known as rūz-e tabī'at (روز طبیعت) or Nature Day. People spend time picnicking outdoors and throw the Sabzeh from the Haft-sīn table into flowing water. It is said the Sabzeh absorbs negative energy from the home as it wilts, therefore must be disposed of via a river or stream.

The word Nowruz means new day; its spelling and pronunciation may vary between countries.

Farsi   نوروز (Nowruz)

Arabic نوروز (Nawrūz)

Armenian Նովրուզ (Novruz)

Balochi نؤرۏچ (Nauròc)

Chinese 诺鲁孜节 (Nuòlǔ zījié)

Dari نوروز (Nawrōz)

Gujarati નવરોઝ (Navarōjha)

Georgian ნოვრუზ (Novruz)

Hebrew נורוז (Noroz)

Hindi नौरोज़ (Nauroz)

Kazakh Наурыз (Nauryz)

Kurdish نەورۆز (Newroz)

Kyrgyz Нооруз (Nooruz)

Mongolian Наурыз (Nauryz)

Pashto نوی ورز (Nəway wrəz)

Tajik Наврӯз (Navrūz)

Turkish Nevruz

Turkmen Nowruz

Urdu نوروز (Nauroz)

Uyghur نەۋروز

Uzbek Navro'z