Happy Nowruz 2018! Yes, that time of year is here again when Navroz Mubarak wishes would fill up the air. Nowruz, also known as the Persian New Year marks the end of frosty winters and welcomes the spring with open hearts. If your soul is still untouched by the warmth of the Iranian spring festival, the sight of bright Google doodle honouring Nowruz should do the wonder. The search engine giant has once again lit up their users’ faces by presenting the most gorgeous design on the occasion of this widely-celebrated festival. Google has sent across most heart-warming Nowruz 2018 greetings on the festival date falling on March 21.

Seeing a splash of greenery on the homepage of Google is enough to rejuvenate your soul. Not just the forest of fresh green leaves, the doodle also presents blooming flowers, the traditional tulip and hyacinth that is widely used to decorate houses post cleaning sessions during Nowruz. But what will catch your attention in this luscious greenery design is a buzzing bee and a big-eyed bug who are shown greeting each other. How incredibly cute are these two? Indeed, spring is finally here.

Millions of Iranians and non-Iranians will be celebrating Nowruz worldwide, the tradition dating back 3000 years. It is celebrated on the first day of the first month called Farvardin in the Iranian calendar. At the exact moment when the sun crosses the celestial equator and equalizes night and day, it marks the beginning of Nowruz, the Persian New Year or Iranian New Year.

Just like Christmas, Nowruz is widely celebrated across the globe. However, in Iran, the celebrations last over two weeks. The Nowruz 2018 Google doodle will be seen in the countries where the festival is of utmost importance so much so that official public holidays lasting four days to over a week are given. These countries are Uzbekistan, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, and Azerbaijan. Parsi community in India celebrates Nowruz with great fun and fervor.

Nowruz celebrations include weeks of spring cleaning called Khouneh Tekouni (literally means ‘shaking the house’) or ‘complete cleaning of the house’. Apart from cleaning of the houses, there is a beautiful tradition of Haft-Seen decoration. Individuals also deck up in new outfits with families and friends coming together to feast and extend warm Nowruz or New Year greetings.

In addition to captivating doodle, Google has also provided further information on the Nowruz celebrations. Like music and sports were an integral part of the weeklong festivities in Azerbaijan, countrymen of Uzbekistan enjoy a traditional meal of ‘sumalyak’, signifying life, abundance and warmth. Meanwhile, in Kyrgyzstan, everyone turns out for public concerts as the air hums with the joyful rhythm of the traditional ‘komuz'.

Coming back to the grand Nowruz celebrations in Iran, people look for the closest source of fresh flowing water to set afloat a sabzeh (fresh grass or sprouts), thus bidding farewell to the old and ushering in the new. The world is a mixed bag of beautiful cultures and traditions and Nowruz rightly depicts this peace and cultural harmony.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 21, 2018 01:01 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).