Nourooz is by faaar the most important holiday in Iran and it has been celebrated for thousands of years.
here are some pics from celebrations in Iran.
ancient Iranians preparing for Norouz
this one's a bit of a weird tradition and I don't know when it began but every house hold prepares a table with 7 items starting with the letter "S" in the Persian alphabet (it's called "haft seen" or "seven s).
The Haft Sīn items are:
* sabzeh - wheat, barley or lentil sprouts growing in a dish - symbolizing rebirth
* samanu - a sweet pudding made from wheat germ - symbolizing affluence
* senjed - the dried fruit of the oleaster tree - symbolizing love
* sīr - garlic - symbolizing medicine
* sīb - apples - symbolizing beauty and health
* somaq - sumac berries - symbolizing (the color of) sunrise
* serkeh - vinegar - symbolizing age and patience.
Other items on the table may include:
* Sonbol - Hyacinth (plant)
* Sekkeh - Coins - representative of wealth
* traditional Iranian pastries such as baghlava, toot, naan-nokhodchi
* Aajeel - dried nuts, berries and raisins
* lit candles (enlightenment and happiness)
* a mirror (symbolizing cleanness and honesty)
* decorated eggs, sometimes one for each member of the family (fertility)
* a bowl of water with goldfish (life within life, and the sign of Pisces which the sun is leaving). As an essential object of the Nowruz table, this goldfish is also "very ancient and meaningful" and with Zoroastrian connection.[62]
* rosewater, believed to have magical cleansing powers
* the national colours, for a patriotic touch
* a holy book (e.g., the Avesta, Qur'an, Bible, Torah, or Kitáb-i-Aqdas) and/or a poetry book (almost always either the Shahnameh or the Divan of Hafez)
haji firooz
The traditional herald of the Nowruz season is a man called Hājī Fīrūz (or Khwāja Pīrūz). He symbolizes the rebirth of the Sumerian god of sacrifice, Domuzi, who was killed at the end of each year and reborn at the beginning of the New Year.
charshanbe suri (fire festival)
Chahārshanbe-Sūri (Persian: چهارشنبه سوری, pronounced Chārshambe-Sūri) meaning Wednesday Feast, from the word sour[citation needed] which means feast in Persian is an ancient Iranian festival dating back to at least 1700 BCE of the early Zoroastrian era.[1] Also called the Festival of Fire, it is a prelude to Nowruz, which marks the arrival of spring. Traditionally celebrated on the last Tuesday night of the year, Chahrshanbeh Soori has, since the Iranian revolution, been marked on the evening before the last Wednesday.
sizdah bedar
Sizdahbedar or Sizdah Be-dar (Persian Sizdah Bedar ) is the name of a ceremony in Persian Culture. Sizdah is the Persian term for thirteen. Leaving the house on the Thirteenth Day of Farvardin (the first month of Iranian calendar), and joyfully spending the day outdoors have been a national tradition since ancient times in Iran. Sizdah Bedar (in English: Getting rid of the Thirteenth) has been possibly considered as a tradition because some people believe the thirteen is an unlucky number, and everybody should get rid of the thirteen.