Yalda Night from ancient to the present

Yalda Night has been one of the oldest symbolic celebrities and it was as significant as other seasonal celebrations in Iran. Yalda Night is the longest night of the year, which Persians celebrate at the end of the fall night until midnight when winter begins.

Families would gather in loving grandparents' warm, cherished and cosy houses. Additionally, they were used to setting a table with delicious nuts and colourful fruits such as pomegranates, watermelon, and dried fruit and warming the house by fire. Moreover, knowledge was essential and played a crucial role in the Persians' lives. we used to put a poet's book and elders would read poems to others, and then all the families were quiet and just listened to the epic or romantic poems and meaningful stories. 



The ceremony was a gathering party on a peaceful, friendly, warm, and spiritually memorable night that was considered a time of hope when people waited for the longer days and sun. 




In contrast to the past, in today's celebrations, most Iranians live in apartments where small families gather together to make a memorable night. Similarly, past and present celebrations are lively, traditional and colourful. Additionally, we usually wear red and green clothes. Likewise, people still gather and celebrate the longest night, but instead of sitting around the fire, they enjoy their modern lifestyle with the help of technology, and they enjoy bright electric lights and comfortable houses. Similarly, eating pomegranates, watermelon, dried fruit, and nuts is still symbolic food for the Iranian Yalda's table. However, people make cakes and other modern desserts. As same as before, young people or the elderly would read poems. Otherwise, there is a big difference between before and nowadays, since lifestyles have changed. For instance, family members like to record videos or take pictures, and modern people want to make memorable files on their computers or share them on social media.

Overall, the main idea of celebrating the victory of light over darkness remains the same.





.p.s. There is no exact evidence of when the first Yalda night was, but historians believe it was celebrated over 2500 years ago. Ancient Persians believed in Mithra, the god of Light, who was part of the Persian religion. 

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