Guide

A Yalda night date

On the winter solstice, around 21 December, Iranians stay up through the longest night of the year with fruit, nuts, poetry and each other. It might be the most romantic night in the Persian calendar.

What happens on Yalda

Families gather around a korsi or a table, eat red fruit (pomegranate and watermelon) for the sunrise to come, crack ajil, and read the poems of Hafez. Someone opens the Divan at random for a fal, a fortune, and everyone argues about what it means.

A Yalda date

• Bring a pomegranate and a knife that is up to it.
• Read each other a fal. The poem chosen for a new couple is always meaningful, one way or another.
• Make it cosy: candles, tea, and staying up later than you meant to.
• If you are not ready to host, many cities have Yalda events at Persian restaurants and cultural centres.

A line to send

Shab-e Yaldat mobarak, happy Yalda. Simple, warm, and a better opener than a wave emoji.

Keep reading

• Nowruz dating
• First date ideas with a little Persian in them
• Conversation starters in Farsi
• Persian dating, wherever you live