The Bangla year was therewith called Bangabda like on 14 April 2021 in Bengali calendar will be called 1428 Bangabda (১৪২৮বঙ্গাব্দ).Īkbar asked the royal astronomer Fathullah Shirazi to create a new calendar by combining the lunar Islamic calendar and solar Hindu calendar already in use, and this was known as Fasholi shan (harvest calendar). According to some sources, the current Bengali calendar owes its origin in Bengal to the rule of Mughal Emperor Akbar who adopted it to time the tax year to the harvest. This calendar was, and its new year did not coincide with the solar agricultural cycles. Mughal Emperor Akbar first introduced the Bengali New Year and official Bengali calendar to ease (decrease) the tax collection process.ĭuring the Mughal rule, land taxes were collected from Bengali people according to the Islamic Hijri calendar. from Who invented the Bengali New Year Calendar? Mughal Emperor Akbar It is organized by the Faculty of Fine Arts, the University of Dhaka. In 2016, the UNESCO declared this festivity as a cultural heritage of humanity. The traditional greeting for Bengali New Year is শুভ নববর্ষ (Shubho Noboborsho) which is known as “Happy New Year”. It, therefore, almost always on the date of either 14 April or 15 April every year in the English calendar. The festival date is set according to the lunisolar Bengali calendar as the first day of its first-month Boishakh. Bengali people celebrate Bengali Happy New Year as greeting Shubho Noboborsho with each other. It is celebrated on 14 April as a national holiday in Bangladesh, and on 14 or 15 April in the West Bengal, Tripura and some parts of Assam State in India. Pahela Baishakh or Bangla Noboborsho (Bengali: বাংলা নববর্ষ) or Happy New Year in Bangla is the first day of Bengali Calendar. Bengali New Year stems from the Bengali calendar which was used in the 16th century. This day encourages spending time with family, visiting fairs, and cleaning one’s house in preparation for a new year. It also celebrates the agricultural season. From folk songs to skits and even traditional theatre performances can be witnessed in the prominent towns of Bengal.In this post, today we will know about the Bengali New Year History, Significance, how they are celebrated and many more things. Bengali New Year, also known as Pahela Baishakh, celebrates the first day of the Bengali calendar. Dance programs rule the evenings of the special day.The rest of the day is spent visiting relatives and also eating and sharing good food.Rangolis are prepared in the home ad sometimes in front of the home and this is being followed even to this date.This meal consists of rice, fish, green chilies, onions, and certain sweets. Apart from this, a grand breakfast is prepared by the women in the households.After the procession, the men and women sing songs and dance to various traditional folk songs.Men wear ‘tikka’ that is obtained at the temple.Men dress in traditional kurtas and dhotis and these are mostly white in color.They look elegant and this is accompanied by some white pearls. Women adorn themselves with large gold earrings and heavy jewelry that is mostly gold.They decorate their hair with fresh flowers. These are white sarees with bright red borders. The attire is one of a kind as Garad sarees are worn by women.After this, a religious procession is undertaken and such a clustered procession is called Prabhat Pheris.
In the morning, the day starts off by believers watching the first-morning rising sun, as they believe it will be auspicious.They believe the beginning of the month is a day that should be welcomed properly and then the whole year will be fine. Once prayers are over, it is considered an auspicious day to begin new ventures and even clear off old loans. On this day, a lot of prayers are chanted as people believe this will bring in happiness, good health, long lives, and then prosperous lives. Since this is the harvest festival, people pray to Lord Ganesha and also to Goddess Laxmi so that their life and households are filled with God’s blessings. So, when brought together – the festival is named Poila Baisakhi or Pahela Baisakhi or even Pohela Baisakhi. In Bengali, the name Poila can be translated as First and then Baisakh is the first month of the Bengali Calendar.