Poush ( bn, পৌষ; ne, पौष) is the 9th month of both the Bengali calendar and the

Nepali calendar Nepali calendar can refer to: * Vikram Samvat, the official calendar in Nepal * Nepal Sambat Nepal Sambat, also spelled as Nepala Sambata, (Nepal Bhasa: , Nepali: ) is the lunisolar calendar used by the Newari people of Nepal. The Calendar era ...

. It overlaps December and January of the Gregorian calendar. It is the first month of the winter season. This month marks the start of

Winter Winter is the coldest season of the year in polar and temperate climates. It occurs after autumn and before spring. The tilt of Earth's axis causes seasons; winter occurs when a hemisphere is oriented away from the Sun. Different cultur ...

(, ''Sheat'') in the Bengali calendar.

Etymology

This month is named after the star

Pushya Pushya is a nakshatra in Indian astrology. Some texts refer to it as Tishya, meaning "to look". It corresponds to γ, δ, and θ Cancri in the Cancer (constellation) Cancer is one of the twelve constellations of the zodiac and is located in ...

().

Culture

During Poush crops are harvested and farmers often have ample food and income. Bengali people celebrate Poush Sankranti as one of their festival on the last day of Poush. They make

Pitha Pithas are a variety of food similar to pancakes, dumplings or fritters, originating from the Indian subcontinent, common in Bangladesh and India. Pitha can be sweet or savoury, and usually made from a dough or batter, which is then steamed, fri ...

at their homes and share those among each others. Bangladesh Poush Mela Udjapon Parishad organises a three-day fair in

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, formerly known as Dacca, is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bangladesh, largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest ...

, Bangladesh. In his novel ''Ganadevata'', the noted Bengali writer

Tarashankar Bandopadhyay Tarasankar Bandyopadhyay (23 July 1898 – 14 September 1971) was an Indian novelist who wrote in the Bengali language. He wrote 65 novels, 53-story-books, 12 plays, 4 essay-books, 4 autobiographies, 2 travel stories and composed several songs. ...

quotes a rural rhyme: :Poush-Poush, golden Poush, :Come Poush but don't go away, don't ever leave, :Don't leave Poush, don't, :The husband and son will eat a full bowl of rice.Mukhopadhyay, Manabendra, ''Tarashankar's Birbhum '', ''Paschim Banga '', Birbhum Special Issue, February 2006, , pp. 259-68, Information & Cultural Department, Government of West Bengal.

Observances marked (per official use in Bangladesh)

* Poush 1 -

Victory day of Bangladesh Victory Day ( bn, বিজয় দিবস ''Bijôy Dibôsh'') is a national holiday in Bangladesh celebrated on 16 December to commemorate the defeat of the Pakistan Armed Forces in the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971 and the Independence ...

* Pouch 9 -

Christmas Eve Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas Day, the festival commemorating the birth of Jesus. Christmas Day is observed around the world, and Christmas Eve is widely observed as a full or partial holiday in anticipation ...

* Pouch 10 -

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

* Pouch 11 -

Boxing Day Boxing Day is a holiday celebrated after Christmas Day, occurring on the second day of Christmastide (26 December). Though it originated as a holiday to give gifts to the poor, today Boxing Day is primarily known as a shopping holiday. It ...

* Pouch 17 -

New Year's Day New Year's Day is a festival observed in most of the world on 1 January, the first day of the year in the modern Gregorian calendar. 1 January is also New Year's Day on the Julian calendar, but this is not the same day as the Gregorian one. Whi ...

* Pouch 22 - Traditional Epiphany and Armenian Christmas * Pouch 23 - Christmas according to the Juilian Calendar * Pouch 31 - Poush Sankranti

References

Months of the Bengali calendar Nepali calendar {{Nepal-stub