March 20, 2022
Nowruz is the annual Persian New Year celebrated worldwide by various ethno-linguistic groups every March. Nowruz means “new day” in Persian and marks the spring equinox, when winter changes into spring in the northern hemisphere. Nowruz is the most important festival of the year in Iran and is also celebrated in a number of other countries across the Middle East, Central Asia, South Asia, the Balkans, and East Africa, as well as here in the US.
Nowruz dates back at least 3,000 years. The holiday has changed over the centuries, but the original message of rebirth and renewal remains unchanged. People start their preparation for the festivities weeks beforehand. They clean their homes and anything broken is repaired or replaced. This spring cleaning is to wash away the bad from the previous year and prepare for better things to come in the new year.
Throwback Video — How IVC Celebrates Nowruz On-Campus
Event
An Introduction to Persian New Year: Nowruz
A virtual presentation by Prof. Sohila Serami of Saddleback College
Thursday, May 17 | 7 pm | Join Event »
IVC Resources
- IVC Library — Visit the IVC Library's Nowruz Resources guide to find books, articles, art images, and streaming videos on topics including history, art, film, music, and food.
- Nowruz Virtual Background
Related IVC Courses
- ANTH 3 – Culture and Language
- COMM 9 – Intercultural Communication
- ETHN 10 – Intro to Ethnic Studies
- GEOG 2 – Cultural Geography
- HIST 30 – History of Ethnicity and Culture in the US
- LIT 46 – Ethnicity in the Literature of the United States
- SOC 20 – Race and Ethnic Group Relations
Persian Organizations
- Farhang Foundation (Supporting Iranian Art and Culture)
- OMID (Local Resource for Students)
- Orange County Iranian-American Chamber of Commerce
- Iranian-American Community Group
- Network of Iranian-American Professionals of Orange County
- US Iran Chamber of Commerce
Access Any Time: Art, Culture, Learning and More
- International Nowruz Day
- Persian New Year, or Nowruz, Explained
- Celebrating Nowruz: 10 Places to See Persian Art Around the World
- Chahar-Shambeh Suri: The Festival of Fire
- A Boundless Drop In A Boundless Ocean
- The Arts of Iran
Videos
- Nowruz: How 300 Million People Celebrate Persian New Year
- Nowruz (Simply Explained)
- History of Nowruz
- Nowruz Celebration in Los Angeles
- A Splash of Nowruz
- Traditional Nowruz (Haft-Seen)
Food (Videos)