LingoflyНаурыз
- НаурызNauryzMarch
“Наурыз” (Nauryz) — March in Kazakh. Noun, level A1, topic — time, days and hours. Both a month and the main holiday of the year: "Nauryz meiramy" on March 22. Persian for "new day" — the new year of the solar calendar. In a live sentence: “Наурызда күн мен түн теңеледі” (Nauryzda kün men tün teñeledi) — In March the day and the night are equal. You can hear how it sounds right here. Written with the characters Н, а, у, р, ы, з.
In short
| Written in Kazakh | Наурыз (Nauryz) |
| Read in Latin letters | Nauryz |
| Translation | March |
| Part of speech | noun |
| Level | A1 |
What it is
Both the name of the month and the new year by the solar calendar — March 22, at the equinox. A festival of renewal: people make peace, forgive debts, pitch yurts on the squares and cook nauryz-koje from seven ingredients.
This word does not reduce to a translation: the thing it names is not part of everyday life here, so a “translation” would end up a description in brackets. The easiest way to learn it is together with its surroundings — where you meet it and what it is for.
Why it looks that way
Both a month and the main holiday of the year: "Nauryz meiramy" on March 22. Persian for "new day" — the new year of the solar calendar.
A word with a story stays in memory longer than one learned as a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
In a live sentence
A single word almost never appears alone in conversation. A sentence shows where it fits and what stands next to it.
Nearby words: time, days and hours
Today, tomorrow, in the morning, at six. You cannot arrange to meet without these — let alone understand the answer.
- СағатSağathourThe same word means "clock", wrist or wall: "qol sagaty" is a wristwatch. "Sagat neshe?" is "what time is it?".
- КүнKündayThe same word means "sun", as in many Turkic languages: the luminary and the day it measures share a name. When you need the luminary itself, it is "kun kozi".
- БүгінBügintoday"Bul", "this", plus "kun", "day": the two fuse into one word.
- ЕртеңErteñtomorrowDo not confuse with "ertemen", "early in the morning": the root "erte", "early", is shared, but the meanings have drifted apart.
- КешеKesheyesterdayDo not confuse with "kesh", "evening": one letter moves a whole day.
- КешKesheveningAlso "late": "kesh boldy" is both "it got late" and "evening has come". One root in "keshke", "in the evening", and "keshikti", "was late".
- ТүнTünnightThe deep night, already without light. The evening before dark is "kesh", and for Kazakh the border between them is firm.
- Сағат нешеде?Sağat neshede?at what time?"Hour", "how many", plus the where tail. Literally "at which hour".
- Кеш болып қалдыKesh bolyp qaldyit is already lateAgain that "qaldy" — "it went and became". Literally "it became late", not "it is late".
- Таңғы асTañğy asbreakfastng is an n said in the nose; gh is a throaty g on the exhale: tan-GHY as
Test yourself
Five questions from the same set — “time, days and hours”. Recalling a spelling from meaning is harder than knowing a familiar word on sight, and therefore more useful.
- How do you say “March” in Kazakh?
Both a month and the main holiday of the year: "Nauryz meiramy" on March 22. Persian for "new day" — the new year of the solar calendar.
- How do you say “night” in Kazakh?
The deep night, already without light. The evening before dark is "kesh", and for Kazakh the border between them is firm.
- How do you say “today” in Kazakh?
"Bul", "this", plus "kun", "day": the two fuse into one word.
- How do you say “breakfast” in Kazakh?
"Tan" is "daybreak", "-ghy" turns it into a quality: "the morning meal". Lunch and dinner are assembled exactly the same way.
- How do you say “evening” in Kazakh?
Also "late": "kesh boldy" is both "it got late" and "evening has come". One root in "keshke", "in the evening", and "keshikti", "was late".
How not to forget this word
Reading a word and remembering it are different jobs. A day later, little survives of a single reading — and that is not bad memory, that is how memory works.
- This has been tested on foreign words too. The difference shows up most when you test yourself a few days later rather than straight away.checked many timesKim & Webb, 2022, Language Learning 72(2) · 48 experiments, 3,411 participants, 98 comparisons.
- Recalling beats re-reading. Covering the translation and trying to remember it does more than reading it ten more times.checked many timesAdesope, Trevisan & Sundararajan, 2017, Review of Educational Research 87(3) · 188 experiments, 272 comparisons. g = 0.61; against plain re-reading 0.51, against passive review 0.93.
- An answer you worked out yourself sticks better than one handed to you.checked many timesBertsch et al., 2007, Memory & Cognition 35(2) · 86 studies, 445 comparisons, d = 0.40.
Frequently asked
How do you say “March” in Kazakh?
«Наурыз» (Nauryz), read “Nauryz”. In a live sentence: “Наурызда күн мен түн теңеледі” (Nauryzda kün men tün teñeledi) — In March the day and the night are equal. You can hear how it sounds right on this page. Noun, level A1, from the set “time, days and hours”; written with the characters Н, а, у, р, ы, з.
How is “Наурыз” (Nauryz) written in Latin letters?
Nauryz. This is a practical spelling — you need it to read aloud and be understood, not to meet an academic standard.
Why does this word look the way it does?
Both a month and the main holiday of the year: "Nauryz meiramy" on March 22. Persian for "new day" — the new year of the solar calendar. A word with a story stays in memory longer than a “spelling — translation” pair: memory holds on to meaning, not to a string.
Can I hear how this sounds?
Yes, right on this page: click the word and it will play. The sound works on any phone, and nothing needs to be installed.