Yalda Night/ Bazar of tehran/ Iran
Photographer: masoud Shahrestani
Shab-e YaldaΒ (βYalda night"Β Persian:Β Ψ΄Ψ¨ ΫΩΨ―Ψ§β) orΒ Shab-e ChellehΒ (βnight of fortyβ,Β Persian:Β Ψ΄Ψ¨ ΪΩΩβ) is anΒ Iranian festivalΒ celebrated on the βlongest and darkest night of the year,β Yalda is a winterΒ solsticeΒ celebration, that is, in the night of theΒ North Hemisphere'sΒ winter solstice. Calendrically, this corresponds to the night of December 20/21 (Β±1) in theΒ Gregorian calendar, and to the night between the last day of the ninth month (Azar) and the first day of the tenth month (Day) of theΒ Iranian civil calendar.
The longest and darkest night of the year is a time when friends and family gather together to eat, drink and read poetry (especiallyΒ Hafez) until well after midnight. Fruits and nuts are eaten and pomegranates and watermelons are particularly significant. The red color in these fruits symbolizes the crimson hues of dawn and glow of life. The poems of Divan-e Hafez, which can be found in the bookcases of most Iranian families, are read or recited on various occasions such as this festival andΒ Nowroz. Shab-e Yalda was officially added to Iranβs List of National Treasures in a special ceremony in 2008β¦(Wikipedia)
