Kurdish celebration of Newroz
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- This article is on the Kurds celebrating the Iranian feast of Norouz. For the main article, please see Norouz.
Newroz (in Kurdish: Newroz meaning: new day) is the Norouz festival of the spring and coincides with the spring equinox as celebrated by some Kurds. The new year day is 21th of March and the festival falls mainly between 18th till 24th March.
In a wider context, Norouz is celebrated across Iran, Azerbaijan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, parts of India. It is also celebrated in Turkey and various countries of Central Asia, in other words where the Persian Empire was historically influential. In most of this large area it has different spellings and different traditions and costoms.
For Newroz people gather into the fairgrounds mostly outside the cities to welcome spring. Women wear gaily colored dresses and spangled head scarves and young men wave flags of green, yellow and red, the colors of the Kurdish people. By lighting fire and dancing and singing around it they hold this festival. [1], also see: [2], [3].
The Kurdish greetings that accompany the festival are Newroz píroz be! meaning Happy Newroz! or Bijí Newroz! meaning Long live Newroz!
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[edit] Mythology
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According to the Kurdish legends, Newroz celebrates the overthrow of Zuhāk (Dehaq) the tyrant, an Assyrian king in present day Kurdistan who had snakes growing out of his shoulders and required human sacrifices to control his affliction. He was eventually defeated when a brave blacksmith by the name of Kāwa (a Kurdish name) led a revolt against him and freed the people. Kaveh then climbed to the top of the mountain above the castle and lit a large bonfire to tell all the people of Mesopotamia that they were free. Soon, hundreds of fires all over the land were lit to spread the message and the flames lept high into the night sky, lighting it up and cleansing the air of the smell of Zuhāk and his evil deeds. The same way that Kurdish people still light fire in this day. [4], [5].
Some sources claim that Newroz is not an originally Iranian traditions rather it originates from Babylon and Assyrian traditions of ancient Mesopotamia. In the reign of Sennacherib (705-682 BC) the House of the New Year, Akitu, was built and the festivities celebrated in the city. The new Year festival was usually canceled in Mesopotamia when the ruling King was not present in the city [6].
Ziryab (789-857 C.) the celebrated Kurdish singer and musician of Abbasid courts (who fled to Andalusia) was the first to introduce New Year festival to Spain and thence to Europe.
According to the Kurdish writer Musa Anter, Newroz is the celebration of the victory of the Kurdish blacksmith Kawa in his battle against the King Dehāk. In old days, this celebration was performed on August 31st, not March 21st. However, after the introduction of the Arab calendar, the celebration was shifted to March [7].
Not all Kurdish sources and scholars support the mythology of Kāwa. According to some Kurdish historians, such as Professor Mehrdad Izady, Dehāk is the same as Astyages the last King of the Medes who was against Zoroastrianism. The mythology of the Kāwa Hesinker(Kāwa the Blacksmith) is likely to have come from Zoroastrian sources who were against the Median King [8].
A news article in the bulletins of Kurdish Institute of Paris suggests that Newroz celebrations originate from a Kurdish legend, which is the story of the successful revolt of Kurds against the Semitic tyrant Dehāq. The revolt was lead by Kāwa the Blacksmith, who light fires on mountaintops in order to summon his supporters [9] (the article has not provided any source for this version of the legend). The tradition of lighting fires on mountaintops is still alive among the Kurds.
[edit] In Modern times
The festival was illegal until 2000 in Turkey, where most of the Kurds live [10], and Turkish forces arrested Kurds celebrating Newroz [11]. In Newroz 1992 at least 70 people celebrating the festival were killed by Turkish security forces [12]. The official Turkey now celebrates Nevruz as a Turkish spring holiday. Newroz is however still considered as a potent symbol of Kurdish identity in Turkey. Newroz celebrations are usually organised by Kurdish cultural associations and pro-Kurdish political parties. Thus, the Democratic Society Party was a leading force in the organisation of the 2006 Newroz events throughout Turkey. In recent years the Newroz celebration gathers around 1 million participants in Diyarbakir, the biggest city of the Kurdish dominated Southeastern Turkey.
Newroz is banned in Syria. Several people were killed in clashes between Syrian authorities and Kurds in March 1986 during the spring festival of Newroz. In 1992, security forces carried out mass arrests after Kurds marked the 30th anniversary of the census which resulted in the deprivation of citizenship of tens of thousands of Kurds.
In 1995, the Syrian authorities banned the traditional Newroz celebrations and arrested dozens of Kurds, according to Amnesty. [13] [14].
In Newroz 2006, Thousands of people across London celebrate Newroz as the traditional Kurdish New Year’s Day in March. The first day of the festival is on 21 March and there is a Kurdish Cultural Festival taking place throughout the month.
Mayor Ken Livingstone the Mayor of London says: Newroz is an ideal opportunity for Londoners of all backgrounds to celebrate, explore, and educate themselves about London’s Kurdish communities. It is my pleasure to wish you a Happy Newroz. [15].
[edit] Controversies
Contemporary Newroz celebrations in Turkey are often criticized for having the character of a political rally rather than a traditional celebration, because of a highly political atmosphere and a political content of many speeches. On several occasions the Newroz events have turned into violent clashes between authorities and demonstrators shouting slogans in praise of imprisoned Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) leader Abdullah Öcalan.
During the 2006 Newroz celebrations Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan stated that "There are circles that want to overshadow Nevruz Festival (…and) exploit our spring festival to speculate new clashes and disputes" [16].
[edit] Variations
There are also other traditions practiced in parts of Kurdistan such as Iranian and Iraqi Kurdistan during the festival, for. ex. Helawe Melawe which is special to children and teenagers; They can ask for spring gifts from their kins or neighbours by visiting them at their homes and reading traditional short poems, such as:
People widely use fireworks during the festival.
- Helawe Melawe!
- Kureketan bé be zawe!
- Hélkeyekim bo bixene bin tawe!...
Almost meaning: I've come for Newroz gift! wishing your son becomes a bridegroom! put a gift in the dish!...
In Iranian Kurdistan, although lightning fire in the 21 March people also participate in the two other traditions of Chaharshanbe Suri (See the smoke over city of Bukan: [17]) and Sizdebedar which are both parts of Norouz.
[edit] Newroz in Kurdish literature
Newroz has been mentioned in works of many Kurdish poets and writers as well as musicians. For example Kurdish famous writer and poet Piramerd (1867-1950) writes in his poem Newroz:
- The New Year’s day is today. Newroz is back.
- An ancient Kurdish festival, with joy and verdure.
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- For many years, the flower of our hopes was downtrodden
- The fresh rose of spring was the blood of the youth
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- It was that red colour on the high horizon of Kurd
- Which was carrying the happy tidings of dawn to remote and near nations
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- It was Newroz which imbued the hearts with such a fire
- That made the youth receive death with devoted love
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- Hooray! The sun is shining from the high mountains of homeland
- It is the blood of our martyrs which the horizon reflects
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- It has never happened in the history of any nation
- To have the breasts of girls as shields against bullets
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- Nay. It is not worth crying and mourning for the martyrs of homeland
- They die not. They live on in the heart of the nation.
Many famous Kurdish musicians such as the late Hasan Zirak (1921-1972) song for Newroz.
[edit] See also
- Norouz (the main article on New solar day celebration)
- Kurdish culture
