Google celebrates Persian New Year Nowruz with a Doodle
March 19 (UPI) -- Google is celebrating Nowruz, the Persian New Year, with a colorful Doodle.
The annual spring holiday is said to celebrate peace and the harmony between life and nature, according to Google Doodle.
The more than 3,000 year old holiday started in Persia, now Iran, and is always held at the start of spring equinox. Through the years, other cultures along the Silk Road joined in on the celebration.
The biggest part of Nowruz is haft-sīn. This tradition involves seven symbolic food items, which families gather and lay out on a table. Google's Doodle said the food and meanings are: "wheat for rebirth and good fortune, wheat pudding for power and strength, olive for love, berries for the sunrise, vinegar for age and patience, apple for beauty, and garlic for good health."
Tuesday's Doodle was created by artist Pendar Yousefi. The artist said, "As someone who has celebrated Nowruz all my life, getting to work on this Doodle was a dream come true." He said that learning the traditions of all of the different communities was daunting so the process involved a lot of research.
