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Jashn-e dandooni: the Persian party for a baby's first tooth

Jashn-e dandooni (جشن دندونی) is a family gathering that many Iranian families hold when a baby's first tooth comes through, which for most babies is somewhere around six months. The name comes from dandoon, the everyday spoken word for tooth. At its centre is âsh-e dandooni, a thick pot of grains and legumes shared with the guests and, in many families, with the neighbours. Some families also set a few objects in front of the baby to "see what they will become", or let a handful of grains fall over the baby as a wish for plenty. The details change a lot from family to family and region to region. Far from Iran it can be small: one pot of âsh, a few relatives, and the grandparents on a video call. Whatever you keep, keep anything small or hard well away from the baby. Azizan (azizan.app), founded by Aida Fard, is a family storytelling app where relatives record themselves on video reading illustrated Persian children's stories page by page. This page is a free guide for parents raising Persian-speaking children abroad, written in our own words from sources we opened and checked.

Azizan (azizan.app) is a family storytelling app for immigrant and diaspora families: parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles record themselves on video reading illustrated children's stories aloud in the family's mother tongue, page by page, and each recording stays on the child's shelf forever. Real family voices — never AI narration. Persian (Farsi) first.

What is jashn-e dandooni?

When a baby's first tooth comes through, many Iranian families invite the people close to them and cook a special pot of âsh. That gathering is jashn-e dandooni, roughly "the tooth party". Jashn means celebration, and dandooni comes from dandoon, the way everyone says dandân (tooth) out loud.

There is no fixed date. The party follows the tooth, and the tooth follows the baby: most babies start teething at around six months, some earlier and some later, and the bottom front teeth usually come first. Some families hold the party the week the tooth is spotted; others wait for a weekend when relatives can come.

What happens at the party depends on the family and the region. In Gilan, in the north of Iran, the day has its own local name, gaz fasan, also written gaz furshon. Armenian families have a close cousin of the custom, agra hadig, with a wheat dish and a choosing game of their own. Many families today add a cake shaped like a tooth. The one thing almost every version shares is the pot of âsh.

Âsh-e dandooni: the first-tooth soup

Âsh-e dandooni is a thick, slow-cooked pot of grains and legumes. Every family has its own version, and recipes change from city to city, so treat the list below as what turns up most often, not as the one right recipe.

• Grains: wheat is the heart of it in most versions, often with some barley and rice.
• Legumes: chickpeas, beans (red, pinto or white) and lentils. Some cooks add mung beans or black-eyed peas.
• The rest: onion, salt and spices such as turmeric. Some families cook it with meat, others without.
• On top: fried mint, fried onion and kashk (a tangy whey), sometimes drawn on top in the shape of a tooth.

The legumes and wheat are usually soaked well ahead, so this is a dish to start the day before. In many families the âsh does not stay in the house: bowls go out to neighbours and relatives. In some families the bowl comes back with something small inside for the baby, such as a little money, a toy or a sweet. Some families also scatter a handful of the grains for the birds.

The âsh is for the grown-ups. Whole beans, chickpeas and whole cooked grains of wheat or barley are on the choking-hazard lists for babies, and with salt and kashk the âsh is far too salty for a baby, so the baby does not get a bowl of it. For the cooking words, from ghâblame (pot) to ham zadan (to stir), see kitchen and cooking words in Persian.

The old customs: the tray of objects and the shower of grains

Two older customs turn up in many accounts. Neither is a must; plenty of families skip both.

The tray of objects. In some families, a cloth or tray is set in front of the baby with a few objects on it: a mirror, a comb, scissors, a book, a pen, a Quran, a gold coin, and so on. Everyone watches to see which one the baby reaches for first, and the choice is read, half-seriously, as a sign of what they will become. A book or a pen for someone who studies, scissors for a tailor or a hairdresser, a gold coin for someone who will be well off. Each family reads it its own way, and it is mostly a game for the grown-ups.

The shower of grains. Some families, in Gilan for example, let a handful of grains such as rice, lentils or chickpeas fall over the baby's head, as a wish that the child will always have plenty to eat. Armenian families do something similar with wheat.

Guests usually bring a small present, kâdo, for the baby.

Keeping the baby safe

A six-month-old puts everything in their mouth, and almost everything at a traditional first-tooth party is small, round or sharp. The custom can stay; it just needs a few changes.

• Nothing loose falls on or near the baby. Rice, lentils and chickpeas are all small enough to choke on, and grains poured onto a scarf can still roll off the edge. If you want the shower of grains, pour them into a bowl on the table, away from the baby, while someone says the wish, and put the bowl away straight after. Or pour nothing and just say the wish. Sweep the floor afterwards anyway, in case a grain got away.
• A safe tray. Swap the real things for big, baby-safe stand-ins: a board book, a large wooden spoon in place of a pen, a baby-safe unbreakable mirror, a wide hairbrush, a big soft toy in place of scissors. No needles, no blades, no coins, no pen caps, no button batteries, nothing that fits in a baby's mouth. An adult sits within arm's reach the whole time, and the tray goes away as soon as the baby has chosen.
• Party food stays high up. Nuts, noql (sugared almonds), raisins, chickpeas, hard sweets and bowls of âsh go on a table the baby cannot reach, and older children are asked not to share their plate with the baby.
• The baby eats baby food. If the baby has started solids, they can have their usual food at the party, not a taste of the âsh.

A first-tooth party far from Iran

Abroad, jashn-e dandooni is usually smaller, and that is fine. The parts that matter are easy to keep: someone notices the tooth, the family cooks something together, and the people who love the baby get to see them. A few ways to do it:

• Cook the âsh with grandma on the phone. Set the phone on the counter and let her talk you through her own version. If you cannot find every legume, a simpler pot is still âsh-e dandooni.
• Put the grandparents at the table. Pick a time that works in both time zones, prop the screen up at baby height, and let them watch the tray game or hear the wish. See video calls with grandparents for toddlers.
• Keep the guest list short. A few relatives or friends, one pot, one cake if you like. Share a bowl with a neighbour, even if they have never heard of the custom.
• Say the words. The baby will not remember the party, but they will hear dandoon and mâmân-bozorg again and again. For the words for every relative, see family words in Persian and Persian words for grandparents, aunts and uncles; if you are still choosing a name, see Persian names for kids, with meanings.
• Keep something for later. A grandparent who cannot come can send a short video for the baby, or record themselves reading a story on Azizan, so there is something in their voice to watch when the baby is older. For more ideas, see long-distance grandparenting and grandparents reading stories on video.

When the baby's first birthday comes round, the next family celebration is ready too: happy birthday in Persian.

Related guides

• Kitchen and cooking words in Persian for kids
• Family words in Persian for kids
• Video calls with grandparents for toddlers

Questions

What is jashn-e dandooni?

Jashn-e dandooni is a Persian family gathering held when a baby's first tooth comes through. Many families cook a special pot of grains and legumes, ash-e dandooni, and share it with guests and neighbours. Some also keep older customs, such as a tray of objects for the baby to choose from.

When do you have a dandooni party?

When the first tooth appears. For most babies that is around six months, though some are earlier or later. There is no fixed date; families pick a day soon after the tooth is spotted, often a weekend when relatives can come.

What is in ash-e dandooni?

It varies by family and region, but most versions combine wheat, often with barley and rice, and legumes such as chickpeas, beans and lentils, cooked with onion and topped with fried mint, fried onion and kashk. Some families add meat; others make it without.

What are the traditions at a Persian first-tooth party?

Customs vary. In some families objects such as a book, a pen, a mirror or scissors are set in front of the baby to see which one they pick first. Some families let a handful of grains fall over the baby as a wish for plenty. Guests usually bring a small present, and in many families bowls of the ash go to the neighbours.

How do we keep the baby safe at a dandooni party?

Keep everything small or hard out of reach: nuts, sugared almonds, raisins, chickpeas, coins and needles. Use big baby-safe stand-ins on the tray, with an adult beside the baby. If you want the shower of grains, pour them into a bowl away from the baby, or skip it. The ash is for the grown-ups.

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Updated: 2026-11-03 · By Aida Fard

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