Azerbaijan celebrates Wind Tuesday

Today in Azerbaijan, the third pre-holiday Tuesday is being celebrated on the eve of the Novruz holiday, known as Yel Chershenbesi (Wind Tuesday).

This day celebrates the arrival of the first calendar month of spring, with only a few days left before Novruz spring feast

Wind Tuesday holds importance as a symbol of the wind, representing the air of the upcoming New Year. In ancient mythological beliefs about the creation of the world, air is considered the last of the four natural elements. The wind, in particular, was designated as the representation of this element in the beliefs of the ancestors.

In Azerbaijani folklore, the figure of Yel Dede (Father Wind) is portrayed as the most powerful of all natural phenomena, guiding kind-hearted individuals lost in the forests by giving them a ball of thread and blowing on it to show them the way.

This tale of guidance forms the basis of the well-known story of Fatma Nene. Many customs and beliefs are associated with Yel Dede, such as refraining from taking flour from the mill until his arrival.

The central ritual of Yel Chershenbesi involves the lighting of bonfires in all courtyards. According to ancient beliefs, these fires symbolically take away all the misfortunes of the past year. By jumping over the flames, individuals participate in a symbolic act of cleansing, transferring their troubles, misfortunes, and disappointments to the fire as a way of preparing for the New Year ahead.

Note that the first day of Novruz falls on the spring equinox on March 20-21. The holiday celebrates the arrival of spring and the start of a new year.

On September 30, 2009, Novruz was included in UNESCO’s List of Intangible Cultural Heritage. On February 23, 2010, the UN declared March 21 the International Day of Novruz.

Azerbaijan is to mark Torpaq Charshanbasi (Soil Tuesday) on March 19. The Novruz holiday will be celebrated on March 21.