Nowruz
The Persian new year is celebrated by the Kurdish community in Syria (about 10% of the population), concentrated in the northeastern regions of Rojava and the Kurdish neighborhoods of Aleppo and Damascus. Nowruz is not just a new year; it is a declaration of Kurdish identity. The tradition is to light bonfires, jump over the flames (symbolizing the triumph of light over darkness), prepare dolma (stuffed vegetables), wear Kurdish clothes, sing Kurdish songs, and dance the halparke (the Kurdish circle dance). In the Kurdish quarter of Aleppo, the fires burn all night, and the sound of the zurna and davul echoes through the alleyways. Nowruz commemorates the legend of Kawa the Blacksmith, who led a revolt against the tyrannical ruler Zahhak, and the bonfires symbolize the fires Kawa lit on the mountaintops to signal victory.
