TEHRAN – Niavaran Cultural-Historical Complex is set to launch a space dedicated to Iranian tribes and ethnic communities, Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance, Mohammad-Mehdi Esmaeili said on Monday.

“A house of tribes will be established in the Niavaran cultural center Ethnic House to help introduce the various Iranian ethnic groups,” Esmaeili said.

He made the remarks during his visit to a tribal exhibition organized to mark the World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, saying: “That house is meant to show the cultural diversity of Iran and the unity of the plurality of its people.”

He described Iran as a rainbow of cultural diversity, saying: “Ethnic communities from Sistan-Baluchistan to the Turkmen Sahara, and from the Azarbaijan region to Khuzestan and Kurdistan, all adhere to their own rituals and traditions under one umbrella and single flag in the name of Iran.”

Moreover, the official referred to Greater Iran as a cultural land from one side to the borders of China and the Indian subcontinent to Central Asia and on the other side to the Anatolia region and the Caucasus, saying the name of Iran stands on the wise and philosophical visions of elites of this land.

Iranian nomads live in Fars, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, Khuzestan, Isfahan, and some other provinces. They usually change between their winter quarters in steppes (Qishlaq or warmer areas) and summer quarters in green mountainous regions (Yeylaq or cooler countryside).

Sightseers may visit nomads at different times of the year. However, the best seasons are spring and summer. There are several nomadic tribes you can meet or stay with, each of them having its unique lifestyle, culture, customs, foods, and musical performances.

Held every year on 21 May, the World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development celebrates not only the richness of the world’s cultures but also the essential role of intercultural dialogue in achieving peace and sustainable development. The United Nations General Assembly first declared this World Day in 2002, following UNESCO’s adoption of the 2001 Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity, recognizing the need to “enhance the potential of culture as a means of achieving prosperity, sustainable development and global peaceful coexistence.”

AFM