Samanū Samanak , or Sumalak or Sümölök ( symœlœ́k) is a sweet paste made from germinated wheat, which is prepared for Nowruz

Nowruz

Nowrūz is the name of the Iranian New Year in Iranian calendars and the corresponding traditional celebrations. Nowruz is also widely referred to as the Persian New Year....

 in a large pot (like a kazan

Kazan (cookware)

A kazan, qazan, qozon or ghazan is a type of large cooking pot used throughout Central Asia and in Russia, roughly equivalent to a cauldron, boiler, or Dutch oven. They come in a variety of sizes , and are often measured by their capacity, such as "a 50-litre kazan"...

). Traditionally, women take a special party for it during the night, and cook it from late in the evening till the daylight, singing related songs. In Tajikistan

Tajikistan

Tajikistan , officially the Republic of Tajikistan , is a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. Afghanistan borders it to the south, Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the north, and China to the east....

 and Afghanistan

Afghanistan

Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...

 they sing: Samanak dar Jūsh u mā Kafcha zanēm - Dīgarān dar Khwāb u mā Dafcha zanēm. (meaning: "Samanak is boiling and we are stirring it, others are asleep and we are playing daf

Daf

A daf is a frame drum used as a musical instrument in popular and classical music. The term daf is used in Iran / Kurdistan for a large drum that has a series of four interlinked rings in the frame. Daf is mostly used in Middle East, Iran, Armenia, Pakistan, Turkey, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan and ...

"). In modern times, making sumalak can be a family gathering.

A plate or bowl of Samanu is a traditional component of the Haft sin table

Haft sin table

Haft-Sin or the seven 'S's is a traditional table setting of Nowruz, the traditional Iranian spring celebration. Today the haft seen table includes seven specific items, all starting with the letter sin in the Persian alphabet. Haft-Sin was originally called Haftchin derived from the words Chin...

.

External links

• Cooking Samanak in Tajikistan, rferlonline's channel on Youtube, March 21, 2009.