– Yalda Night is celebrated on the last day of Azar (the last month of autumn in the Iranian calendar year) and before the first day of Dey (the first month of winter).

– Watermelon and pomegranate are amongst the most characteristic features of Yalda Night so that a few days prior to Yalda, their prices usually soar.

– Yalda night (Shab-e Chelleh), one of the most celebrated Persian traditional events which marks the longest night of the year, made it onto the United Nation’s cultural heritage list

– In the ancient Iranian calendar, winter is divided into two parts, Chelleh Bozorg (literary meaning the bigger forty) from 22nd of December to 30th of January and Chelleh Koochak (the smaller forty), which starts from 30th January to 10th of March.

– The word Yalda, meaning birth, was imported from Syriac into the Persian language by the Syriac Christians.

– Narratives say that Yalda Night marks the birth of winter and the eventual triumph of the sun as the days grow longer.

It’s a time for pleasant family reunions that entails laughter, merriment and good cheer. Hearts move closer to one another in the company of loved ones on Yalda.

– According to UNESCO, Yalda ceremonies, in the best way, point to cultural diversity and human creativity, especially when one considers the wide range of the communities that celebrate it.