The Azerbaijani people have several holidays, which have been celebrated since time immemorial.  Plus, a celebration is the assertation of any people.

The holdiay of Novrus is celebrated on the day of the vernal equinox, and marks the coming of a new astronomical year in the Northern Hemisphere. For some cultures, there is a bond made between the coming of spring and the reawakening of nature, celebrating it as the beginning of a new year though the splendor of fesitivities. 

Authors of the Middle Ages in their works spoke on spring traditions and husbandry calendar faiths with the spread of Islam.

In his work Siyasatname Nizam al-Mulk spoke about Novruz as a mass folk holdiday celebrated with the coming of spring.  Novruz was praised and described in classic Eastern poetry, including  Bahariyye, liric poems that is widely spread in Azerbaijan poetry.

Novruz has unprecedented sides that express the spiritual essence of Turkic nations, in particular Azerbaijan.

Novruz cuisine on this day is very special. “It is impossible to imagine Novruz without the holiday cuisine,” says Tahir Amiraslanov, the director of the center of National Cuisine. “If we exclude the cuisine elements (baking pakhlava and shakarbura, beating eggs, welcoming guests, growing Samani, etc.) from Novruz, it doesn't make any sense.”

In its sixty-fourth  session, the United Nations General Assembly recognized 21 March as International Day of Novruz. Novruz, which means new day, is celebrated by more than 300 million people worldwide as the beginning of the new year.  The text was introduced by Azerbaijan’s representative. Novruz was included into the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

                                                                            Sevinj Fadai