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When is Pongal in 2014? |  |
In 2013, Pongal is on Tuesday, January 15th.
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What is Pongal? | |
Thai Pongal, commonly referred to as Pongal, is a harvest festival celebrated in South India following the harvest season. The festival itself lasts from the 14th of January until the 17th but the main occur on the 15th. The Pongal has very similar purposes compared to the Thanksgiving holiday in the United States. During the Thai Pongal festival, the Tamils give thanks to Surya, the sun god, for the bountiful harvest and offer the first grain to him.
The Pongal holiday is most popular in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu (the most southern part of the Indian peninsula), the Indian Union Territory of Pondicherry, and the northern part of Sri Lanka.
The word “Thai” refers to the 10th month in the Tamil called and falls in the middle of January on an annual basis. The word “Pongal” comes from the boiling over of milk and rice during the month of Thai.
