Nowruz – a spring festival | Gallery

Kurds were marking Nowruz - which means "new day" in Farsi - in the northern Iraqi city of Aqrah [AFP]

The holiday also marks the new year of the Solar Hejri calendar - now in the year of 1388 - which is the official calendar in Iran and Afghanistan [AFP]

Hajji Firuz, a black-faced, red-clad troubadour, traditionally heralds Iranian Nowruz celebrations [AFP]

Iranians purchase new clothes to wear for the new year, as well as flowers like the hyacinth and the tulip [AFP]

Traditionally, families also set a table with "Haft Seen" - seven symbolic items, including apples, garlic and sumac - for the occasion [Reuters]

In Egypt, some marked the season by visiting the grave of Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, the last Shah of Iran [EPA]

While in Afghanistan, tens of thousands of people poured into the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif from across the country [AFP]

Afghans prayed and held special religious ceremonies at the Hazrat Ali Shrine [AFP]