Azernews.Az

BAKU – Azerbaijani and Turkish communities in the United States have sent hundreds of appeals to President Barack Obama asking him to cite Turkic nations in his annual address over the Novruz holiday.

The appeals noted that Turks living in regions stretching from the Caucasus to Central Asia celebrate Novruz, a holiday marking the advent of spring that has been in existence for millennia. Novruz is celebrated on March 21, the day of the vernal equinox. It is an official holiday in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. Novruz is also celebrated by other Turkic nations, including Uighurs, Yakuts, Karakalpaks, Volga (Kazan) Tatars, Crimea Tatars, and Bashkirs. However, for some reasons, Azerbaijanis, Turks and some other nations have not been mentioned in the US presidents’ congratulatory messages in the past five years, and the addresses limited the scope of the holiday to Iran and the Persian American community.

"We call on Obama to mention Azerbaijan and Turkey in his congratulatory message. Let this ancient and peace-loving tradition to bring all people closer, step up inter-civilization dialog and promote mutual understanding and cultural diversity," the statement said.

The UN General Assembly passed a resolution in early 2010 to announce March 21 the International Day of Novruz. Afterwards, the OSCE recognized Novruz as an international holiday as well.

Novruz is celebrated by more than 300 million people worldwide as the beginning of the new year. It has been celebrated for more than 3,000 years in the Balkans, the Black Sea Basin, the Caucasus, Central Asia, the Middle East and other regions.