Celebrating the Persian new year at ECE’s Nowruz event

Over 200 students and faculty celebrated Nowruz, the Persian New Year, on March 21 with traditional food, calligraphy, and musical performances. This is the first ECE Nowruz celebration, part of its growing tradition of recognizing the cultural events of its diverse student body.

“It is a great idea to continue celebrating Nowruz as well as other important events from different cultures in our international community,” says Armin Jam, ECE grad student. “Events like this give us the opportunity to learn about other cultures and their traditions, while also fostering our sense of belonging and making our community happier.” To read more about Nowruz and its traditions, see this pamphlet prepared by ECE grad student Mohsen Jafari.

Nowruz, meaning “New Day,” is the name for the Iranian/Persian New Year, and marks the first day of the first month in the Iranian calendar. Nowruz is celebrated primarily in Western and Central Asia, including 17 countries. It coincides with the vernal equinox, or the first day of spring in the northern hemisphere, and has been celebrated for more than 3,000 years.

ECE grad student Mohsen Jafari assisted with the planning of this event.  He met with ECE staff to discuss the traditional items on the Haft-Seen table and what each item represented, chose authentic cuisine, and created an informational pamphlet which was distributed at the event to explain the meaning and events associated with Nowruz.

You can see more images from the event here.