Tehran (IP) - Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, in a message on the ancient holiday of Nowruz, congratulated his counterparts in Tajikistan, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Pakistan on Sunday night.

Iran PressIran News: Nowruz is an ancient celebration of Iranian culture that is celebrated with the beginning of the solar new year in many countries.

At 19:03:26 on Sunday, the Persian New Year (year 1401 AH) started.

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, in his message to the Speakers of the Parliaments of the Nowruz Civilization, while congratulating the solar New Year, expressed hope that the New Year will be a year full of peace, tranquility, and lasting security for all nations.

In this message, Ghalibaf also said that the world today needs dialogue, cooperation between nations and the elites of different societies more than ever, adding: "Strengthening relations between parliaments as representatives of nations plays an important role in creating peace."

On February 23, 2010, at the suggestion of the Islamic Republic of Iran and several countries that share this holiday, the United Nations designated March 21 as "International Day of Nowruz (meaning new day)" each year and called on countries to celebrate and promote the occasion by holding various ceremonies. 

Nowruz marks the first day of Spring and is celebrated on the day of the astronomical vernal equinox, which usually occurs on March 21. It is celebrated as the beginning of the new year by more than 300 million people worldwide and has been celebrated for over 3,000 years in Iran, the Balkans, the Black Sea Basin, the Caucasus, Central Asia, the Middle East, and other regions. Nowruz plays a significant role in strengthening the ties among peoples based on mutual respect and the ideals of peace and good neighborliness. Its traditions and rituals reflect the cultural and ancient customs of the civilizations of the East and West, which influenced those civilizations through the interchange of human values.

Celebrating Nowruz means the affirmation of life in harmony with nature, awareness of the inseparable link between constructive labor and natural cycles of renewal, and a solicitous and respectful attitude towards natural sources of life.

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