Mass celebrations of Nowruz Day in Kirkuk

KIRKUK / IraqiNews.com: Mass celebrations are taking place in the city of Kirkuk on Sunday evening over the Nowruz Day and the 1991 uprising anniversary as hundreds of Kurds were out on the streets clad in traditional Kurdish garment. The celebrations, held at Life City Hall, al-Iskan Park and the Kirkuk Castle as well as the neighborhoods of al-Shurja, Rahimawa, Imam Qassem, Azadi, al-Hurriya and al-Faylaq, were attended by representatives of the local government and political and partisan figures. Nowruz, or the New Light, is the name of the New Year in Iranian calendars and the corresponding traditional celebrations. Nowruz is also widely referred to as the Persian New Year. Nowruz is celebrated and observed by Iranian, Afghan and Kurdish peoples and the related cultural continent and has spread in many other parts of the world, including parts of Central Asia, Caucasus, South Asia, Northwestern China, the Crimea and some groups in the Balkans. Nowruz marks the first day of spring and the beginning of the year in Iranian calendar. It is celebrated on the day of the astronomical vernal equinox, which usually occurs on March 21 or the previous/following day depending on where it is observed. The city of Kirkuk, a mix of Kurdish, Arab and Turkmen population, lies 250 km northeast of the Iraqi capital Baghdad. AmR (TS) 1095