A guide to celebrating Garangao children’s festival in Qatar (2015)
Venues all around town are revving up to host a slew of activities in time for their annual Garangao festivals in what promises to be a night of song, colorful traditional clothing and, of course, candy.
The event, typically celebrated on the 14th night of the holy month of Ramadan, is known by different names across the region.
Children wearing traditional clothes and singing a special Garango song will knock on their neighbors’ doors to receive sweet treats in a tradition not unlike Halloween in the West (but without ghouls and goblins).
The children’s celebration is known as Garangao or Garangaou in Qatar and Bahrain, Karkee’aan or Qariqaan in Saudi Arabia, Gargee’aan in Kuwait, Garangashoch, At-Tablah or Qarnakosh in Oman and Hag Al Leylah in UAE.
Though immensely popular, the exact origins of the term are unknown. Some believe the onomatopoeic term is an allusion to the rumbling of sweets and nuts in large traditional baskets, while others say it hails from the sound made by clanging of stones.
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Source News: Doha News
Photo: Omar Chatriwala
