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About Nabanna

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About Nabanna

Nabanna means "new rice". It is the harvest festival of Bengal, kept in West Bengal, Bangladesh and Tripura in the month of Agrahayan, in November and December, when the golden aman paddy is cut and brought home.

Before anyone eats the new rice, it is offered to the gods, to Maa Lakshmi and to the ancestors. Families cook the first rice with milk, notun gur (the new date palm jaggery), bananas and coconut, and a little is set out for the crows and other birds, so that every living being shares the harvest.

Homes are cleaned and the floors are painted with white alpana patterns. Kitchens fill with payesh, many kinds of pithe and fresh sweets. Relatives are invited, and villages hold fairs with baul songs, folk music and games.

In towns and cities, Nabanna is kept as a festival of Bengali food and culture, with fairs of rice dishes, handicrafts and songs. For everyone it is a day to thank the farmers and the land for the year's rice.

How people celebrate Nabanna

  • Offering the first new rice to Maa Lakshmi and the ancestors
  • Cooking payesh and pithe with notun gur
  • Setting out new rice for the crows and birds
  • Painting alpana on the floors
  • Inviting relatives for a harvest feast
  • Village fairs with baul and folk songs

How to wish well

  • Wish friends a full granary, a sweet payesh and a happy home.
  • A word of thanks for farmers makes a Nabanna wish feel real.
  • "Nabanner shubhechha" is the simple Bengali greeting.

Questions about Nabanna

When is Nabanna?

In the Bengali month of Agrahayan, in November and December, after the aman rice harvest. Many families keep it on the first day of Agrahayan; others choose a good day in the month. The date for each year is shown on this page.

What does Nabanna mean?

Naba means new and anna means rice or food, so Nabanna is the festival of the new rice.

How is Nabanna celebrated?

The new rice is offered to Maa Lakshmi and the ancestors, then cooked with milk, notun gur and fruit. Families make payesh and pithe, paint alpana and invite relatives.

Is Nabanna celebrated in Bangladesh?

Yes. Bangladesh keeps Nabanna Utsob on 1 Agrahayan, 16 November by its calendar, with fairs and cultural programmes.

Is Nabanna the same as Nuakhai?

They share the same idea of eating the new rice after offering it to God. Nuakhai is the festival of western Odisha in Bhadrapada; Nabanna is the Bengali festival of Agrahayan.

What do you say on Nabanna?

Say "Happy Nabanna" or "Nabanner shubhechha", and wish someone a full granary and a happy home.

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