Persian night educates domestic students about Persian culture through food, rituals and performances.
Iran and the United States has had a shaky history since the 1950s.
Despite these conflicts, Iranian students want to give American students the opportunity to learn the history and culture of Iran and the U.S.
International and American students and faculty attended Persian Night in Walter Hall Rotunda, where guests ate Iranian cuisine and learned about the Iranian culture and history.
Persian Night is celebrated one month before Yalda Night, a holiday where Iranians celebrate the longest night of the year.
Athens City Council member Pat McGee said he wished the venue was larger so more American students could come to the event to learn about Persian culture.
“Iranian students or students from any foreign country get to see that Americans are willing to come into their comfort zone and learn something about their culture,” McGee said.
A Termeh, a type of Iranian handwoven cloth, covered the tables. Red fruits such as pomegranate and melons were arranged on the table because the color brightens the night, Fatemeh Khalili, president of Iranian Student Association, said.
For the first half hour, students and faculty mingled with each other and ate appetizers from their tables. Each person had their own bowls of pomegranate and nuts at their seats.
The event officially began with opening remarks from Khalili and an introduction from the hostess of the evening, Golshan Madraki, a graduate student studying industrial and system engineering. Madraki joked about the pronunciations of Iran and Persia, and taught the audience how to do a “Persian snap.”
Ali Rafiei, a graduate student studying chemistry, started off the performances with the ritual of Pahlevani, a tradition in Iran. Pahlevani, Rafiei said, takes place in what was called a Zurkhana, which means “the house of strength.” The ritual involves a morshed (master) and a myander (coach), Rafiei said. Many items are used in the rituals as symbols, such as sang (rock) which symbolizes a shield. Rafiei danced the ritual to a zarb, an Iranian drum, played. After the Phalevani ritual, five musicians played classical Persian music using instruments such as a kamancheh (spiked fiddle) and a ney, which is a flute made out of reed.
Madraki then told the audience “ten fun facts about Iranians.” The performances continued with musicians playing Persian rock music and volunteers battling in a lip syncing competition.
“As part of being a part of the global community,” Rafiei said. “I think it’s really important for people from different countries to reach an understanding, that everyone should be a friend of other nations. … I think as a part of a small community, Ohio University can provide this chance for different nationalities to interact with each other and reach an understanding that other nations are also like them, there’s no difference between them. They’re all human beings.”
The musicians played more Persian music, and the audience clapped along. After the cultural performances were over, dinner started.
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Dishes such as kebab, hummus and rice were served. American, Iranian and other international students and faculty ate and continued to discuss the differences in each other’s cultures. The evening ended with a group photo and a dance party.
Iran is a very polarizing country, Khairul Alam, mechanical engineering professor, said.
“There’s a saying from my country — ‘Know your enemy very well, because you’ll find out they’re not very different from you.’ ”
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