Navruz in Uzbekistan

Navruz (Uzbek: Navroʻz / Наврўз) is celebrated widely in Uzbekistan. It is the day of the vernal equinox, and marks the beginning of spring in the Northern Hemisphere. It has been celebrated on the territory corresponding to modern-day Uzbekistan for at least two thousand years.[1] Nowruz widely celebrated on a vast territory of Central Asia and ritual practice acquired its special features. The festival was legitimized by prayers at mosques, and visits to the mazars of Muslim saints and to sacred streams. In the Emirate of Bukhara, a broad official celebration of Nowruz was started by Amir Muzaffar, who sought to strengthen the image of the Manghyt dynasty during the crisis of political legitimacy.[2]

This article is about celebration of the feast of Nowruz in Uzbekistan. For the main article, see Nowruz.
Children celebrating Navruz in Samarkand in 19th-century Russian Turkestan (now Uzbekistan)

When Uzbekistan was part of the Soviet Union, celebrations of Navruz were generally unofficial, and at times even prohibited.[3] Currently Navruz is an official public holiday in Uzbekistan and is always celebrated on March 21. Still, holiday celebrations are spread out over several days.

Cooking sumalak for Navruz

In preparation for the holiday, people tidy their homes and mahallas (neighborhoods), and buy new clothes. Before, during, and after Navruz, it is customary to prepare sumalak, the main ceremonial dish of the holiday. Sumalak is a sweet paste made entirely from germinated wheat and is cooked in a large kazan. To prepare sumalak friends, relatives, and neighbors – usually women – gather around the kazan, all taking a turn to stir the mixture. When ready, sumalak is distributed among neighbors, relatives, and friends. At Navruz, people also visit relatives and friends and give presents to children.

Navruz celebrations in Bukhara

Navruz is often cited as the most popular holiday in Uzbekistan.[1] On March 21, elaborate holiday concerts are organized across the country, notably in the capital city of Tashkent. Book fairs, concerts, games, and special televisision and radio programs last for the whole month of March. It has been noted that after Uzbekistan gained independence in 1991, government officials have promoted Navruz as a main national holiday and have tightly controlled the content and form of the festivities.[3]

References
  1. Sahadeo, Jeff; Zanca, Russell, eds. (2007). Everyday Life in Central Asia: Past and Present. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. pp. 202–203. ISBN 9780253013538.
  2. Malikov A.M., The celebration of Nawruz in Bukhara and Samarkand in ritual practice and social discourse (the second half of the 19th – the beginning of the 20th century) in Archaeology, Ethnology & Anthropology of Eurasia. volume 48. issue 2. 2020, p.124.
  3. Tursunova, Zulfiya (2014). Women's Lives and Livelihoods in Post-Soviet Uzbekistan: Ceremonies of Empowerment and Peacebuilding. London: Lexington Books. pp. 26–27. ISBN 9780739179789.
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