Nawakhani is harvest festival of of

Jharkhand Jharkhand (; ; ) is a state in eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north and Odisha to the south. It has an area of . It ...

Chhattisgarh Chhattisgarh (, ) is a landlocked state in Central India. It is the ninth largest state by area, and with a population of roughly 30 million, the seventeenth most populous. It borders seven states – Uttar Pradesh to the north, Madhya Prade ...

and

Odisha Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...

. In this festival people eat new grain of rice after harvesting.

Etymology

Nawakhani means ''eating new''. Nawa means ''New'' and Khani means ''eat''. It signify eating new grain after harvest.

Celebration

It is harvest festival of Chota Nagpur plateau region of

and

. People fast, venerate Suraj (Sun) and ancestors by offering new grain. It is celebrated in courtyard. The head of family

sacrifice Sacrifice is the offering of material possessions or the lives of animals or humans to a deity as an act of propitiation or worship. Evidence of ritual animal sacrifice has been seen at least since ancient Hebrews and Greeks, and possibly exi ...

animals ( especially chicken) to Sun and ancestors. Then cooked meat and Tapan (fermentated rice drinks) distributed among family members. In this festival, People prepare bread, Chuda from new rice which grows in plain field called ''Godda dhan''. It is observed to celebrate new grain eating after harvest. It is celebrated by

Sadan people Sadan may refer to: * Sədan, a village and municipality in Azerbaijan * Sadan, Burma, a village in Kani Township *Sadan, Iran, a village in Golestan Province, Iran * Sadan, South Khorasan, a village in South Khorasan Province, Iran * Sadan people ...

of Jharkhand and

Kurukh people The Kurukh or Oraon, also spelt Uraon, or Dhangar ( Kurukh: ''Karḵẖ'' and ''Oṛāōn'') are a Dravidian speaking ethnolinguistic group inhabiting Chhotanagpur Plateau and adjoining areas - mainly the Indian states of Jharkhand, West Benga ...

Observation in other parts of India

This festival is also celebrated in Chhattisgarh. In

Western Odisha Western Odisha or the western part of Odisha, India, extending from the Kalahandi district in the south to the Sundargarh district in the north. History Historically It's a region of 'Greater Kalinga' & ruled by various dynastys. *Mahameghava ...

, it is known as

Nuakhai Nuakhai is an agricultural festival mainly observed by people of Western Odisha in India. Nuakhai is observed to welcome the new rice of the season. According to the calendar it is observed on ''panchami tithi'' (the fifth day) of the lunar for ...

. In

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (, ; meaning 'central province') is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal, and the largest city is Indore, with Jabalpur, Ujjain, Gwalior, Sagar, and Rewa being the other major cities. Madhya Pradesh is the seco ...

, it is known as Nawai celebrated among

Bhils Bhil or Bheel is an ethnic group in western India. They speak the Bhil languages, a subgroup of the Western Zone of the Indo-Aryan languages. As of 2013, Bhils were the largest tribal group in India. Bhils are listed as tribal people of the s ...

. New grain eating festival in

West Bengal West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...

is known as

Nabanna ''Nobanno'' ( bn, নবান্ন, Nobānno; lit: New Feast) is a Bengali harvest celebration usually celebrated with food and dance and music in Bangladesh and in the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura and Assam's Barak Valley. It is ...

References

{{reflist Harvest festivals in India September observances Hindu festivals in India Festivals in Jharkhand Nagpuri culture