Haft-sin

What it is

Haft-sin is the new year spread that Iranians set out at Nowruz, the festival that marks spring's return. The word haft means seven in Persian, and sin is the letter seen. Everything in the main group of seven has a Persian name that starts with that letter. The spread is laid on a table or a cloth at home, with other objects arranged around it. Nowruz is kept in more than twenty countries, and this table is one of its best known customs. People leave it in place through the new year days as a sign of hope for the months to come.

Origins and history

The table is said to have an older form, kept by Persians and later named Haft Shin. According to legend, its items also shared an opening letter, but not the same one: among them wine and candles, syrup and nectar, sweets, boxwood, and either plant branches or anemones. That spread grew popular among Iranians in the Sasanian era, when boxwood stood for long life and greenness. After the coming of Islam to Iran, the letter shin turned into sin, and wine, declared unlawful, gave way to vinegar, its twin. Seven itself was held sacred in the Sasanian faith, whose followers planted seven seeds on seven separate pillars.

The seven items

Each of the seven main items begins with the letter seen. Sabzeh is grain sprouted in a dish, whether wheat, barley, mung bean or lentil. Samanu is a sweet pudding made from wheat germ, known as samani among Shirazi Persians and Kurds. Senjed is the oleaster fruit, serkeh is vinegar, seeb an apple, seer garlic and somagh sumac. Sometimes three more are added: a clock or watch, coins, and hyacinth. Around the seven people commonly place painted eggs and a goldfish, a mirror and candles, and traditional Persian confections, and often a book of wisdom as well.

Symbols and wishes

Every object on the spread carries a wish. According to Zana Salehrad, an Iranian researcher, the cloth is white, a mirror rests at the centre and stands for the endless world, and candles or a lamp are set around it. An egg on the mirror is a sign of the seed and creation of man, and a handful of wheat scattered in front of it stands for sustenance. A loaf of bread speaks of the blessing of the house. Water with a few drops of rose water, a jug, and a cup holding pomegranate or orange leaves complete the setting, and a floating orange stands for the Earth in the universe.

Beyond the seven

Other things belong to the wider spread. A book of wisdom is often included, which may be the Quran, the Avesta, the Shahnameh or the Divān of Hafez. Some tables carry cheese and dates, bread made with seven grains, rose water, olives, pomegranate and willow branches, and figs counted in threes, sevens or twelves. Older accounts name milk for rebirth, a fire pit for lasting heat and light, a freshly struck coin for possession and blessing, an Esfand flower for the Amshaspand Sepandarmaz, and a fish that marks the end of the month of Esfand.

How Haft-sin is kept

A white cloth is laid down, and a mirror is set on it with candles or a lamp that are not put out. The seven items are arranged, and painted eggs, a goldfish, traditional confections and a book of wisdom often join them. In one account of the older table, an egg rests on the mirror, wheat is scattered in front of it as a sign of sustenance, and bread, water, rose water, a jug and a cup holding leaves stand nearby. The spread remains in the house for Nowruz.

When and where

Nowruz falls at the vernal equinox, when spring begins in the northern half of the world and the new year starts. The Haft-sin spread is put out for that day and stays on show through the new year days. Nowruz itself is celebrated in more than twenty countries.

Haft-sin belongs to Iran and to Iranian homes, and Nowruz is celebrated in more than twenty countries. The spread is a household custom, set out in the home rather than at a shrine or a public site. Samanu carries a regional name in Shiraz and among Kurds, where it is called samani.

What Haft-sin means

Those who keep the table read it as a picture of the year they hope for. Greenery and water stand for growth and light, milk for rebirth, a mirror for purity and transparency, a coin for possession and blessing, an apple for love's mystery, and oleaster for affection, fertility and birth. Seven was held sacred in the Sasanian faith, and Iranians offer the spread for the seven Amshaspand. It is a wish for renewal and for harmony with nature.

On the table

Flavours: Sumac Rose water

Days Haft-sin is marked

Questions people ask about Haft-sin

See also

NowruzThe Iranian new year at the March equinox, kept with fire, greenery and picnicsYalda NightA winter solstice gathering in Iran and surrounding regions where families stay awake through the longest night.Chaharshanbe SuriAn Iranian festival of fire and renewal celebrated on the eve of the final Wednesday before spring.Pahlevani and zurkhaneh ritualsA traditional Iranian martial art blending calisthenics, wrestling, music and ethics

Good reading and sources

• Haft-sin on WikipediaEncyclopedia
• More photos on Wikimedia CommonsPhotos and video
• Wikidata recordOpen data

It may contain mistakes. Traditions differ from one family, village and community to the next, and the people who keep them know them best. If something is wrong, tell us. Last refreshed 2026-10-05.