Tehran, March 7, IRNA - The international Norouz dossier will be registered on the World Heritage List in 2016, an Iranian official said.




The international Norouz dossier, which is to be presented to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) by 12 nations during March 2015, will be registered on the World Heritage List in 2016, said the deputy head of Iran’s Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization (ICHHTO).

Mohammad Hassan Talebian added that seven countries have applied for the registration of Norouz, which is the first international dossier in UNESCO, Iran Daily reported.

Norouz is the event marking the onset of spring and New Year.

“This will bring together the countries and initiate cultural cooperation among them,” he said.

“For example, Norouz is the only registered intangible cultural heritage of Pakistan and Afghanistan.”

Talebian noted that all territories have been specified in the world such as the territories of Arab, European Union and Latin American states, and countries with linguistic similarities.

“In this respect, the territory of Persian-speaking nations is of high importance,” he said.

At first, three countries applied for the global registration of Norouz rituals. Then, Iraq and Afghanistan joined the Norouz dossier.

Norouz is a cultural event celebrated by Iran for thousands of years, which upholds monotheism, love, justice, beauty and truth.

In Iran and many other countries, people welcome spring with Norouz that coincides with the astronomical Vernal Equinox Day or the first day of spring mainly on March 21.

The United Nations General Assembly, in its resolution A/RES/64/253 of 2010, designated the International Norouz Day at the behest of several countries that share this holiday.

These countries include Afghanistan, Albania, Azerbaijan, Macedonia, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkey and Turkmenistan.

Inscribed in 2009 on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity as a cultural tradition observed by numerous peoples, Norouz 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 good neighborliness, thus contributing to cultural diversity and friendship among peoples and different communities.

Norouz is the most important national festival of all Iranians. Its celebration is recorded from the Achaemenian period around 500 BCE.

The name first appeared in Pahlavi texts from the Sassanid period, as Nog Roz. It is a celebration of spring equinox, when the sun begins to regain strength and there is a renewal of growth in nature.

Based on the convention for preservation of intangible heritage, if a heritage is shared by different countries, its registration should be proposed by all.

Since Norouz is a tradition shared by all countries located in the perimeters of Iranian civilization, its proposition necessitates the approval of at least five Central Asian countries.


By IRNA