ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – President of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) Masoud Barzani congratulated Assyrian and Chaldean Christians on the holiday of Akitu on Thursday.The festival is also known as Kha b-Nisan, the First of Nisan. It is today connected with the ancient Mesopotamian New Year Akitu Festival. Memory of the latter was lost until the decipherment of cuneiform in the modern period, so I am not sure when the connection was made or reaffirmed. For more on the modern festival, see here. Follow the links from there for more on the ancient Akitu festival.The Assyrian New Year, known as Akitu, marks the beginning of the year 6772 for both denominations. The event is celebrated annually by members of the Christian community across the Kurdistan Region and Iraq.
[...]
Best wishes to all those celebrating either one!
Visit PaleoJudaica daily for the latest news on ancient Judaism and the biblical world.
