Tajik event attracts diplomatic corps and media representatives
The Tajikistan Embassy observed its 2024 Navruz International Day earlier this week at a Seoul hotel where diplomatic corps and media representatives took part.
Tajikistan Amb. Salohiddin Kirom said that Nowruz plays a significant role in strengthening the ties among people based on mutual respect and the ideals of peace and good neighborliness.
Its traditions and rituals reflect the cultural and ancient customs of the civilizations of the East and West, which influenced those civilizations.
Celebrating Novruz means the affirmation of life in harmony with nature, awareness of the inseparable link between constructive labor and natural cycles of renewal, and a solicitous and respectful attitude towards natural sources of life, according to him.
The word Novruz means a new day and its spelling and pronunciation may vary by country like Nowruz, Navruz, Nooruz, Nevruz, Nauryz.
Novruz marks the first day of spring and is celebrated on the day of the astronomical vernal equinox, which usually occurs on 21 March.
It is celebrated as the beginning of the new year by more than 300 million people all around the world and has been celebrated for over 3,000 years in the Balkans, the Black Sea Basin, the Caucasus, Central Asia, the Middle East, and other regions.
Inscribed in 2009 on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity as a cultural tradition observed by numerous peoples, Novruz is an ancestral festivity marking the first day of spring and the renewal of nature.
It promotes values of peace and solidarity between generations and within families as well as reconciliation and neighborliness, thus contributing to cultural diversity and friendship among peoples and different communities.
International Novruz Day was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly at the initiative of several countries that share this holiday.
Under the agenda item of “culture of peace”, many member states prepared and introduced a draft resolution entitled “International Day of Novruz” for its consideration and adoption.
Included in the countries were Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Albania, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Iran, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkey and Turkmenistan.
In February 2010, the General Assembly welcomed the inclusion of Novruz in the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
It also recognized 21 March as the International Day of Novruz, and invited interested member states, the United Nations, in particular its relevant specialized agencies, funds, and programs, and mainly the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, and interested international and regional organizations, as well as non-governmental organizations, to participate in events organized by States where Novruz is celebrated.