Azernews.Az

President Ilham Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva on Monday attended nationwide festivities over the Novruz Holiday, one of Azerbaijan`s most popular national holidays, which has been marked in Oriental countries as the advent of spring for centuries.

President Aliyev and his spouse were warmly welcomed near the Maiden Tower, a historical monument in Icherisheher (Old City) downtown Baku, by thousands of people, who gathered there for the celebrations.

Children in national costumes presented to the president and the first lady a ``khoncha``, a tray with sweets, dry fruits and nuts, and danced on the square outside the Maiden Tower. Beautiful songs eulogizing the spring and Azerbaijan sounded. President Aliyev lit a festive bonfire.

Warriors with swords and shields were on guard at the walls of the Icherisheher fortress and on the square as a reminder of Azerbaijan`s ancient history.

The president and the first lady further headed to the seaside park (boulevard) where they were met with the people dressed as Kosa and Kechel, the main characters of the Novruz Holiday.

Amateur groups from a number of Azerbaijani regions delivered exciting performances. President Ilham Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva listened to national Mugam and Ashig music.

A special feature during the festivities was ``an Oriental market`` organized at the seaside park, which displayed crafts made in numerous Azerbaijani regions.

The president and the first lady also toured an exhibition of Azerbaijani goods. They tried freshly cooked kebab and had some tea with national sweets.

They also familiarized themselves with the works of young artists, fashion designers and craftsmen.

Masters of art, Ashigs and rope-walkers demonstrated samples of Azerbaijani customs, traditions and ancient art.

President Aliyev was presented the first ticket for 2012 U-17 women`s world soccer cup, which will be held in Azerbaijan. Tickets for the tournament, which kicks off on September 22, will be sold online from April 16.

Novruz is celebrated on March 20-21, the time of the vernal equinox, by more than 300 million people worldwide. It has been marked for more than 3,000 years in the Balkans, the Black Sea Basin, the Caucasus, Central Asia, the Middle East and other regions.

Closely related to the astronomic calendar, Novruz is celebrated in the northern hemisphere as the beginning of a new year. A number of nations around the globe link the outset of the spring season with the revival of nature and hold festivities on this occasion.

People begin to mark the holiday a month ahead of time. They mark Tuesdays of the last month of winter which are associated with four elements - Wind, Fire, Water and Soil. Novruz brings people hopes of putting an end to a bad day, replacing Winter with Spring, and signifies the start of the harvesting season.