Lohri is a

midwinter Midwinter is the middle of the winter. The term is attested in the early Germanic calendars where it was a period or a day which may have been determined by a lunisolar calendar before it was adapted into the Gregorian calendar. It appears with s ...

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk horror ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Fo ...

and

harvest festival A harvest festival is an annual Festival, celebration that occurs around the time of the main harvest of a given region. Given the differences in climate and crops around the world, harvest festivals can be found at various times at different ...

that marks the passing of the

winter solstice The winter solstice, or hibernal solstice, occurs when either of Earth's geographical pole, poles reaches its maximum axial tilt, tilt away from the Sun. This happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere (Northern Hemisphere, Northern and So ...

and the end of winter. It is a traditional welcome of longer days and the sun's journey to the

Northern Hemisphere The Northern Hemisphere is the half of Earth that is north of the equator. For other planets in the Solar System, north is defined by humans as being in the same celestial sphere, celestial hemisphere relative to the invariable plane of the Solar ...

. It is one of the Indian harvest festivals observed on or near

Makar Sankranti Makar(a) Sankrānti (), () also referred to as Uttarāyana, Makara, or simply Sankrānti, is a Hinduism, Hindu observance and a mid-winter harvest festival in India and Nepal. It is typically celebrated on 14 January annually (15 January on a ...

(in the month of Magha in the Indian calendar) and falls on the night before Maghi (in the month of Magh in the Punjabi calendar) which commonly falls on 13 January every year. It is celebrated primarily in the

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

region of India and Pakistan and also other regions of

northern India North India is a geographical region, loosely defined as a cultural region comprising the northern part of India (or historically, the Indian subcontinent) wherein Indo-Aryans (speaking Indo-Aryan languages) form the prominent majority populati ...

such as Duggar and

Jammu Jammu () is a city in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir in the disputed Kashmir region.The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kashmir dispute ...

in Jammu and Kashmir,

Haryana Haryana () is a States and union territories of India, state located in the northern part of India. It was carved out after the linguistic reorganisation of Punjab, India, Punjab on 1 November 1966. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with les ...

and

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...

. Lohri is celebrated by

Hindus Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

and

Sikhs Sikhs (singular Sikh: or ; , ) are an ethnoreligious group who adhere to Sikhism, a religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ''Sikh'' ...

in India and is an official holiday in

Punjab, India Punjab () is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. Forming part of the larger Punjab, Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, the state is bordered by the States and union territories of India, Indian states ...

, Jammu and Himachal Pradesh. The festival is celebrated in

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

and Haryana but is not a gazetted holiday. In

Punjab, Pakistan Punjab (, ) is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. With a population of over 127 million, it is the Demographics of Pakistan, most populous province in Pakistan and the List of first-level administrative divisions by popu ...

it is not observed at the official level but Sikhs, Hindus and some Muslims observe the festival in rural Punjab and in the cities of

Faisalabad Faisalabad, formerly known as Lyallpur, is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, second-largest city and primary List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, industrial center of the Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan ...

and

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

Date

Lohri is celebrated one day before Maghi (

) and its date is determined as per Hindu solar calendar. The date of Lohri changes every 70 years. In the late 19th-century, Lohri used to fall on 11 January. In the mid 20th-century, the festival used to be celebrated on 12 January or 13 January. In the 21st-century, Lohri generally falls on 13 or 14 January. Lohri in the year 2024 will fall on 14 January as Maghi will be falling on 15 January.

History

Lohri is mentioned by European visitors to the Lahore Darbar of

Maharaja Ranjit Singh Ranjit Singh (13 November 1780 – 27 June 1839) was the founder and first maharaja of the Sikh Empire, in the northwest Indian subcontinent, ruling from 1801 until his death in 1839. Born to Maha Singh, the leader of the Sukerchakia Misl ...

, such as Wade who visited the Maharaja in 1832. Captain Mackeson described Maharaja Ranjit Singh distributing suits of clothes and large sums of money as rewards on Lohri day in 1836. The celebration of Lohri with the making of a huge bonfire at night is also noted in the royal court in 1844. The accounts of Lohri celebration in royal circles do not discuss the origins of the festival. However, there is much folklore about Lohri. Lohri is the celebration of the arrival of longer days after the

. According to folklore, in ancient times Lohri was celebrated at the end of the traditional month when winter solstice occurs. It celebrates the days getting longer as the sun proceeds on its northward journey. The day after Lohri is celebrated as

. Lohri is an ancient mid-winter festival originating in regions near the

Himalayan mountains The Himalayas, or Himalaya ( ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the Earth's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest. More than 100 peak ...

where winter is colder than the rest of the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...

. Hindus and Sikhs traditionally lit bonfires in their yards after the weeks of the ''

rabi Rabi may refer to: Places * Rabí, a municipality and village in the Czech Republic ** Rabí Castle, a castle * Räbi, a village in Estonia * Rabi, Iran, a city in Karun County, Khuzestan province, Iran * Rabi, Panchthar, a village development c ...

'' season cropping work, socialised around the fire, sang and danced together as they marked the end of winter and the onset of longer days.

Significance

The ancient significance of the festival is it being a winter crop season celebration. A popular folklore in the

region links Lohri to the tale of Dulla Bhatti. The central theme of many Lohri songs is the legend of Dulla Bhatti (Rai Abdullah Bhatti) whose father was a

zamindar A zamindar in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semi-autonomous feudal lord of a ''zamindari'' (feudal estate). The term itself came into use during the Mughal Empire, when Persian was the official language; ''zamindar'' is the ...

who lived in Punjab during the reign of Mughal Emperor

Akbar Akbar (Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar, – ), popularly known as Akbar the Great, was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Humayun, under a regent, Bairam Khan, who helped the young emperor expa ...

. He was regarded as a hero in Punjab, for rescuing girls from being forcibly taken to be sold in slave markets of the Middle East. Among those he saved were two girls Sundri and Mundri, who gradually became a theme of

Punjabi folklore Punjabi folklore (more particularly its folksongs) is a core part of the Punjabi culture. Other important components of Punjabi folklore are farces, anecdotes, idioms, folktales, and sayings. Research Origin Richard Carnac Temple argued in ...

. As a part of Lohri celebrations, children go around homes singing the traditional folk songs of Lohri with the "Dulla Bhatti" name included. One person sings, while others end each line with a loud "Ho!" sung in unison. After the song ends, the adult of the home is expected to give snacks and money to the singing troupe of youngsters. Lohri also marks the beginning of the harvest season and sunny days.

Celebrations

The festival is celebrated by lighting bonfires, eating festive food, dancing and collecting gifts. In houses that have recently had a marriage or childbirth, Lohri celebrations will reach a higher pitch of excitement. Most North Indians usually have private Lohri celebrations, in their houses. Lohri rituals are performed, with the accompaniment of special Lohri songs. Singing and dancing form an intrinsic part of the celebrations. In Punjab, people wear their brightest clothes and come to dance the bhangra and giddha to the beat of the

dhol Dhol () can refer to any one of a number of similar types of double-headed drum widely used, with regional variations, throughout the Indian subcontinent. Its range of distribution in Indian subcontinent primarily includes northern areas such ...

. Punjabi songs are sung, and everybody rejoices. Sarson da saag with makki di roti is usually served as the main course at a Lohri dinner. Lohri holds great importance for farmers. However, people residing in urban areas also celebrate Lohri, as this festival provides the opportunity to interact with family and friends.

Bonfire and festive foods

Lohri is celebrated with a bonfire. The lighting of bonfires during this winter festival is an ancient tradition. Ancient people lit the bonfire to reignite the return of longer days. In Punjab, Lohri is marked by eating sheaves of roasted corn from the new harvest. The January sugarcane harvest is celebrated in the Lohri festival. Sugarcane products such as

jaggery Jaggery is a List of unrefined sweeteners, traditional non-centrifugal cane sugar consumed in the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, North America, Central America, Brazil and Africa. It is a concentrated product of Sugarcane juice, cane jui ...

and gajak are central to Lohri celebrations, as are nuts which are harvested in January. The other important food item of Lohri is radish which can be harvested between October and January. Mustard greens are cultivated mainly in the winter months because the crop is suitable to the agro-climatic conditions.Indian Food Packer, Volume 49 (1995)
/ref> Accordingly, mustard greens are also winter produce. It is traditional to eat gajak, sarson da saag with makki di roti, radishes, ground nuts and jaggery. It is also traditional to eat til rice, which is made by mixing jaggery, sesame seeds and puffed rice. In some places, this dish, more like a snack, is named tilcholi.

Chajja and Hiran dance

Lohri in

is special because of various additional traditions associated with it like Chajja-making and dancing, Hiran dance, and preparing Lohri garlands. Young children prepare a replica of a peacock which is known as Chajja''.'' They carry this Chajja and go from one house to other house celebrating Lohri. In and around Jammu, the special Hiran dance is performed. Selected houses which have auspicious ceremonies prepare eatables. Children wear special garlands made of groundnuts, dry fruits and candies on Lohri day.

Collecting Lohri items and trick–or–treating

In various places of

about 10 to 15 days before Lohri, groups of young and teenage boys and girls go around the neighbourhood collecting logs for the Lohri bonfire. In some places, they also collect items such as grains and jaggery which are sold, and the sale proceeds are divided among the group.Sundar mundarye ho by Assa Singh Ghuman Waris Shah Foundation ISBN B1-7856-043-7 In some parts of Indian Punjab, there is a popular trick–or–treat activity which is engaged in by boys. They select a group member and smear his face with ash and tie a rope around his waist. The idea is for the selected person to act as a deterrent for people who refrain from giving Lohri items. The boys sing Lohri songs asking for Lohri items. If not enough is given, the householder will be given an ultimatum to either give more or the rope will be loosened. If not enough is given, then the boy who has his face smeared will try to enter the house and smash clay pots or the clay stove.

Practices

During the day, children go from door to door singing songs and are given sweets and savouries, and occasionally, money. Turning them away empty-handed is regarded as inauspicious. Where families are welcoming newly-weds and newborns, the requests for treats increases. The collections gathered by the children are known as ''lohri'' and consist of sesame seeds, gajak,

sugar candy Sugar candy is any candy whose primary ingredient is sugar. The main types of sugar candies are hard candies, fondants, Caramel, caramels, jellies, and Nougat, nougats. In British English, this broad category of sugar candies is called ''swee ...

, jaggery, peanuts and puffed rice or popcorn. Lohri is then distributed at night during the festival. Sesame seeds, peanuts, popcorn and other food items are also thrown into the fire. For some, throwing food into the fire represents the burning of the old year and start the next year on

. The bonfire is lit at sunset in the main village square. People toss sesame seeds, jaggery, sugar-candy and '' rewaries'' on the bonfire, sit around it, sing and dance till the fire dies out. Some people perform a prayer and go around the fire. This is to show respect to the natural element of fire, a tradition common in winter solstice celebrations. It is traditional to offer guests til, gajak, jaggery, peanuts and puffed rice or popcorn. Milk and water are also poured around the bonfire by Hindus to thank the Sun God and seek his continued protection. Among some sections of the Sindhi community, the festival is traditionally celebrated as

Lal Loi Lal Loi is the Sindhi term for the Punjabi winter folk festival of Lohri. It is celebrated in some parts of the Pakistani province of Sindh by the Hindus and also celebrated by Sindhi Hindus in India. On the day of Lal Loi children bring woo ...

. On the day of Lal Loi children bring wood sticks from their grandparents and aunties and light a fire burning the sticks in the night with people dancing and playing around the fire. The festival is gaining popularity among other Sindhis where Lohri is not a traditional festival.

Lohri and the financial year

Historically, during the 19th-century, revenue for winter crops was collected either on Lohri or Maghi.

Celebration area

Lohri is celebrated to denote the last of the coldest days of winter. In India, the festival is celebrated in

, and the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir since Mughal times. The festival is also observed as

by the Sindhi community in India.

Lohri songs

There are many Lohri songs. For example, the following song which has words to express gratitude to Dulla Bhatti (the 'ho's are in chorus):

Sunder mundriye ho!
Tera kaun vicharaa ho!
Dullah Bhatti walla ho!
Dullhe di dhee vyayae ho!
Ser shakkar payee ho!
Kudi da laal pathaka ho!
Kudi da saalu paata ho!
Salu kaun samete!
Chacha gali dese!
Chache choori kutti! zamidara lutti!
Zamindaar sudhaye!
Bum Bum bhole aaye!
Ek bhola reh gaya!
Sipahee far ke lai gaya!
Sipahee ne mari itt!
Paanvey ro te paanvey pitt!
Sanoo de de Lohri, te teri jeeve jodi!
(Laugh, cry or howl!)

Translation

Beautiful girl
Who will think about you
Dulla of the
Bhatti Bhatti is a Punjabis, Punjabi and Sindhis, Sindhi caste of Rajputs. They are linked to the Bhatia caste, Bhatias and Bhutto (clan), Bhuttos, all of whom claim to originate from the Hindus, Hindu Bhati Rajputs. They claim descent from the Lun ...
clan will
Dulla's daughter got married
He gave one ser of sugar!
The girl is wearing a red suit!
But her shawl is torn!
Who will stitch her shawl?!
The uncle made choori!
The landlords looted it!
Landlords are beaten up!
Lots of simple-headed boys came!
One simpleton got left behind!
The soldier arrested him!
The soldier hit him with a brick!
(Cry or howl)!
Give us Lohri, long live your pair (to a married couple)!
Whether you cry, or bang your head later!

Related festivals

Lohri is a part of Indian harvest festivals which mark the winter solstice and are celebrated around

. These include Makar Sankranti itself, Pongal (Tamil Nadu),

Bhogi Bhogi is the first day of the four-day Makar Sankranti, Sankranti festival. It falls on the last day of Agrahayana, Agrahāyaṇa or Agrahayana, Mārgaśīrṣa month of Hindu Solar Calendar, which is 13 January by the Gregorian calendar. It ...

(southern India), Magh Bihu (Assam), Poush Sankranti (Bengal).

Notes

References

{{Punjabi festivals Dogra people Festivals in Delhi Festivals in Himachal Pradesh Festivals in Jammu and Kashmir Festivals in Punjab, India Festivals in Punjab, Pakistan Harvest festivals in India Haryanavi culture Hindu festivals in India January observances Punjabi festivals Sikh festivals Traditions involving fire Winter festivals Winter solstice Folk festivals in India