Indian New Year's days

There are numerous days throughout the year celebrated as New Year's Day in the different regions of India. The observance is determined by whether the lunar, solar or lunisolar calendar is being followed. For those regions which follow the solar calendar, the new year falls as Baisakhi in Punjab, Bohag Bihu in Assam, Puthandu in Tamil Nadu, Vishu in Kerala, Pana Sankranti or Odia Nababarsa in Odisha and Poila Boishakh in Bengal in the month of the calendar, i.e., Vaishakha. Generally, this day falls during 14th or 15th of the month of April. Those following the lunar calendar consider the month of Chaitra (corresponding to March-April) as the first month of the year, so the new year is celebrated on the first day of this month like Ugadi in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Gudi Padwa in Maharashtra. Similarly, few regions in India consider the period between consecutive Sankarantis as one month and few others take the period between consecutive Purnimas as a month. In Gujarat the new year is celebrated as the day after Diwali. As per the Hindu Calendar, it falls on Shukla Paksha Pratipada in the Hindu month of Kartik. As per the Indian Calendar based on the lunar cycle, Kartik is the first month of the year and the New Year in Gujarat falls on the first bright day of Kartik (Ekam). In other parts of India, New Year celebrations begin in the spring.

Details

  • Hindu religious festivals are based on Vikram Samvat. Not withstanding the Purnimanta scheme of months that is in use in North India, the New year in Vikram Samvat starts from the first day of Chaitra Shukla Paksha.[1]
  • In Gujarat, the fourth day of Diwali is celebrated as the first day of the Vikram Samvat calendar month of Kartik.[2]
  • Other festivals which are celebrated as new year in India are Baha parab (among Ho, Santal people and Munda) and Sarhul (in Jharkhand).

Calendar view

Calendar Date Festival name Region / Communities / Religions[3]
Solar 1 Chet (14 April) Vaisakhi Punjab, Chandigarh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu, and parts of Delhi
Lunar varies, Mar/Apr Chaitra Navaratri
(Hindu Lunar New Year)		 Bihar (Bhojpur, Magadh), Uttar Pradesh (Awadh, Braj, Bagelkhand, Bhojpur-Purvanchal, Bundelkhand, Kannauj, Rohilkhand), Madhya Pradesh (Bagelkhand, Bundelkhand, Malwa, Mahakoshal, Gird), Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, and parts of Delhi
Lunar varies, Mar/Apr Ugadi Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, parts of Goa
Lunar varies, Mar/Apr Gudi Padwa Maharashtra, Goa (Konkan)
Lunar varies, Mar/Apr Navreh Kashmir
Lunar varies, Jun/Jul Ashadhi Bij Kutch
Lunar varies, Oct/Nov Nutan Varsh Gujarat
Lunar varies, Mar/Apr Cheti Chand Sindh, Sindhi Hindus
Solar fixed, 13/14/15 April Mesha Sankranti
(Hindu Solar New Year)		 Uttarakhand (Garhwal and Kumaon), Nepalis (Sikkim, Darjeeling)
Solar fixed, 13/14/15 April Puthandu Tamil Nadu
Solar fixed, 13/14/15 April Vishu
(traditional)		 Kerala
fixed, 17/18 August 1st Chingam
(Kollam era calendar)
Solar fixed, 14/15 April Bisu Parba Tulu Nadu
Lunar varies, Mar/Apr Sajibu Cheiraoba[4] Manipur
Solar fixed, 14/15 Apr Buisu Tripura
Solar fixed, 13/14/15 Apr Bwisagu Bodoland, Assam
Solar fixed, 13/14/15 April Bohag Bihu Assam
Solar fixed, 13/14 April Pana Sankranti Odisha
Solar fixed, 14/15 April Pahela Baishakh West Bengal and the wider Bengal region
Solar fixed, 13/14/15 April Jur Sital Mithila
Lunar varies, Dec Losoong/Namsoong Sikkim (Bhutia, Lepcha)
Lunar varies, Feb Losar Ladakh, Arunachal Pradesh (Monpa)
Lunar varies, Oct/Nov Mha Puja Sikkim (Newar)
Lunar varies, Feb/Mar Gyalpo Lhosar Sikkim (Sherpa)
Lunar varies, Dec/Jan Tamu Lhosar Sikkim (Gurung)
Lunar varies, Jan/Feb Sonam Lhosar Sikkim (Tamang)
Solar fixed, 13/14 Apr Sangken Arunachal Pradesh (Khamti, Singpho, Khamyang, Tangsa), Assam (Tai Phake, Tai Aiton, Turung)
Solar fixed, 13/14 Apr Bizhu Chakma
Solar varies, 17, 18, 19 Aug[5] Pateti Parsis
Solar fixed, 21 March Nowruz[6][note 1] Iranis/other Zoroastrians

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Mughal records state that Nowruz was celebrated in northwestern Indian subcontinent, but inconsistently. Some Mughal emperors favoring its celebration while others not participating because it was not sanctioned by Sharia. Aurangzeb banned its celebration in 1659, calling it "festival of fireworshippers" and the celebration as a "stupid act".[7]

References

  1. ^ Sewell, Robert; Dikshit, S. B. (31 May 1995). The Indian Calendar with Tables of the Conversion of Hindu and Muhammadan into A.D. Dates & Vice Versa. Motilal Banarsidass Publisher. ISBN 9788120812079.
  2. ^ Sewell, Robert; Dikshit, S. B. (31 May 1995). The Indian Calendar with Tables of the Conversion of Hindu and Muhammadan into A.D. Dates & Vice Versa. Motilal Banarsidass Publisher. ISBN 9788120812079.
  3. ^ Roshen Dalal (2010). Hinduism: An Alphabetical Guide. Penguin Books India. pp. 136–137. ISBN 978-0-14-341421-6.
  4. ^ Arambam Noni; Kangujam Sanatomba (2015). Colonialism and Resistance: Society and State in Manipur. Routledge. p. 249. ISBN 978-1-317-27066-9.
  5. ^ "Navroz Mubarak: 6 Fascinating Facts About Parsi New Year!". newsworldindia.in. News World India. 20 March 2017. Archived from the original on 31 March 2017. Retrieved 30 March 2017.
  6. ^ Jaisinghani, Bella (19 March 2017). "Irani New Year to be celebrated today and tomorrow". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 26 March 2017. Retrieved 30 March 2017.
  7. ^ Stephen P. Blake (2013). Time in Early Modern Islam: Calendar, Ceremony, and Chronology in the Safavid, Mughal and Ottoman Empires. Cambridge University Press. pp. 89–91. ISBN 978-1-107-03023-7.