This year, the main festive celebrations dedicated to Navrouz will take place in Dushanbe.
An official source within the Dushanbe Administration says the main celebration will take place at Istiqlol Square with the participation of President Emomali Rahmon.
On the occasion of Navrouz festival, a number of sports and cultural activities such as wrestling, horse races, buzkashi (goat grabbing) and some others are expected to be organized in Dushanbe and other regions of the country.
Navrouz, which literary means New Day in Persian, Dari and Tajik languages, is the traditional Iranian new year holiday, celebrated by Iranian and many other peoples. It marks the first day of spring and is celebrated on the day of the astronomical vernal equinox (the start of spring in the northern hemisphere), which usually occurs on March 21 or the previous/following day depending on where it is observed. Today, the festival of Navrouz is celebrated in many countries, including Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, as well as Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan. Many peoples in West and South Asia, Northeast China, the Crimea, as well as Albania, Bosnia, Kosovo and Macedonia also celebrate this holiday.
In September 2009, the UN's cultural agency, UNESCO, included Navrouz on its list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. On February 23, 2010, the United Nations General Assembly recognized the International Day of Navrouz.
