Nauryz 2026: Traditions, Greetings and a Gift That Arrives in Telegram

Nauryz is the spring New Year — the Kazakh name for the holiday much of Central Asia and Iran know as Nowruz. In Kazakhstan it is not one day but ten, and its heart is not the concert on the main square but the visit: going to see family, greeting the elders, sitting down to a bowl of nauryz kozhe. Which is exactly why it is the holiday where distance hurts most. This is what the days are, what to cook and say, and how to send a real gift to someone you cannot get to this year.

When Nauryz is in 2026, and how many days off

The official holiday runs from 21 to 23 March. In 2026 the 21st falls on a Saturday, so the weekend days carry over. On a five-day working week that makes five days off in a row, from Saturday 21 to Wednesday 25 March; on a six-day week the days off are 21 to 24 March and the 25th is a working day.

The celebration itself starts well before that. Kazakhstan now marks Nauryznama, a ten-day run of themed days from 14 to 23 March covering charity, culture, national traditions and more, so the holiday builds for a week before the days off begin.

Körisu: the day it begins

Nauryznama opens on 14 March with Körisu, the day of meetings and greetings. After a long winter, people go to see relatives, friends and neighbours, ask after their health, exchange good wishes and thank the elders. It is, in effect, a day for restoring every connection the winter let lapse — and the one tradition in the whole decade that is purely about the people rather than the food or the festivities.

Nauryz kozhe: seven ingredients

The dish of the holiday is nauryz kozhe, a thick soup of seven ingredients that traditionally stand for good fortune in the coming year. The exact seven vary from family to family and region to region, but the base is usually meat, milk, butter and grains such as millet, rice, wheat or corn. What does not vary is that kozhe is made to be shared: it is cooked in quantity, offered to anyone who comes to the door, and eaten together.

How to greet someone on Nauryz

The standard greeting is Kazakh: «Nauryz meiramy qutty bolsyn!» — happy Nauryz. If you are writing rather than visiting, a few lines in the same spirit:

• Happy Nauryz. May the new year bring as much warmth into your home as the spring is bringing to the steppe.
• Nauryz meiramy qutty bolsyn! Health to your parents, peace to your home and a full table all year.
• I cannot come round for kozhe this year, so this will have to do: a hug by message, and a promise to come in person next spring.
• May everything that froze over the winter thaw this spring — plans, friendships and the conversations we kept putting off.

What people give on Nauryz

Nauryz is not a holiday built around presents the way New Year is. The traditional gift is the visit itself, the treat you bring and the respect you show the elders. When a present does change hands, it matters less what it cost than that it arrived in person, on the day.

That is the part a message cannot do — and the part a gift can at least stand in for when you are in Almaty and your family is in Shymkent, or when half the family now lives in another country entirely.

A gift that arrives in Telegram

Telegram gifts are real items that appear in the recipient's profile, bought with Telegram Stars and sent in a chat, which makes them about as close to handing someone a present as a phone gets. We covered the standard way to send one in how to send a Telegram gift, and what Stars are and how they are priced in what Telegram Stars are.

There is a second way, and it is the one we built. In Gift Club you can win a Telegram gift and then pass that gift on to someone else with a link.

How to win a gift in Gift Club and send it by link

1. Win one. Gift Club is a Telegram mini app. Its boxes, scratch cards and games such as Plinko, Minefield and Coin Flip pay out in Stars and in Telegram gifts. They are paid games — a round costs Stars, and a round can lose.
2. Choose what to do with it. A gift you win lands in your collection. From there you can send it to your own Telegram account, exchange it for Stars, or give it away.
3. Create a gift link. Open the gift, choose to send it to a friend and create a link. There is a small fee in Stars, shown before you confirm, and the gift is locked while it waits to be claimed.
4. Send the link with your greeting. Your friend opens it, claims the gift in the Gift Club app, and it appears in their collection. You get a notification when it has been claimed.

One thing to know before you press send: a gift link is one-time, and the gift goes to whoever claims it first. Sent in a private chat, that is exactly what you want. Posted in a family group, it becomes a race — which can be its own small Nauryz game, as long as you meant it to be. You cannot claim your own link.

What this app is, plainly

Nauryz is a family holiday, so this is worth saying directly. Gift Club's games are paid, they are for adults, and winning a gift is never guaranteed — you can spend Stars and win nothing. The return each game is designed to pay back is published, and a round can be checked after the fact; both are explained in the RTP index and in provably fair verification. If what you want is simply to give someone a gift, buying one directly in Telegram is the certain route.

FAQ

When is Nauryz in 2026? The official holiday is 21–23 March. Nauryznama, the ten-day celebration around it, runs from 14 to 23 March.

How many days off does Kazakhstan get for Nauryz 2026? On a five-day working week, five in a row — Saturday 21 to Wednesday 25 March, because the holiday falls on a weekend this year. On a six-day week, 21 to 24 March.

Is Nauryz the same as Nowruz? Yes — the same spring New Year under its Kazakh name. The traditions differ from country to country; kozhe and Körisu are Kazakh.

What is in nauryz kozhe? Seven ingredients, and the exact set varies by family and region. The base is usually meat, milk, butter and grains such as millet, rice, wheat or corn.

Can I send a Telegram gift for Nauryz? Yes — buy one directly in Telegram, or pass on a gift you have won in Gift Club with a gift link.

What if the wrong person opens my gift link? The gift goes to whoever claims it first, so send the link in a private chat rather than posting it anywhere public.

Keep reading

• How to Send a Telegram Gift — the standard route, step by step.
• What Are Telegram Stars — the currency gifts are bought and sent with.
• Rarest Telegram Gifts — if the gift you are sending turns out to be a rare one.