The Ancient Scythian Festival of Sakaia

The Classical Greek sources mention a Scythian festival, named Sakaia, borrowed by ancient Persians and performed even in Babylonia. During the festival, a servant was elected as king for two to five days; the elected servant who was called ''zoganes'', was allowed to do as he was pleased and was entertained by the royal concubines.

But at the end of the period of the licence the masquerade king was dethroned and whipped. The participants who accompanied the carnival king, used to drink and dance. The festival was celebrated at vernal or autumnal equinox.

Interestingly, the Persians who attended the festival dressed in the Scythian garb.

The exact same festival is survived throughout Kurdistan. 

On of the characteristic of the New Year festival (Newroz/Newroj/Gulus) in Kurdistan is the election of the false “amir” (ruler), whom the participants choose from among themselves to rule over them for three to five days. During this time he engages in the most extravagant behavior, making wild promises of long life and wealth to all his “subjects” and, in the general spirit of fun, fining those he judges guilty of “crimes”. (read here)

The festival is even known among the Yezidi Kurds, and Kurds of the Transcaucasus and Khorasan, observed by the archaeologist and iranologist Jean-Jacques de Morgan.
The festival is not nowadays common among other Iranic-speaking nations.

Buke Barane

Buke Barane is a traditional Kurdish festival celebrated in days of drought, when there is no rain to break the thirst of the fields. The term ''Buke Barane'' (pron: buka barana) means ''Bride of the Rain'' or ''Rain Bride'' and with no doubt represents an ancient deity of the rain.

Although depending on the vast geography of Kurdistan there are several regional variations of the festival , but in general they are essentially the same custom and share the same purpose.

The most common version of the festival is as following. people make a doll out of two or more beams and dress it up like a bride in beautiful clothes. dependeing on the region a young girl or a young man/boy holds up and carries the rain-bride in her/his hands. Then the bride is accompanied by a crowd of youngsters and children; they follow her house by house in the town or in the village. At every door they sing a hymn which partially is:

''Buke barane awî dewé,
Awî néw genmanî dewé
chorchorey soybanî dewé...''
that is :
''The rain-bride wants water,
she wants it for the cereal fields,
she wants to see the rain overflowing the roofs...''

By this they expect one of the family members of the house they knocking its door to pour a bucket of water on the rain-bride; and to get some gifts (as booty) for the youngsters accopmpannying the rain-bride.
At the end they all gather somewhere out of the town or the village and pray for the rain. Finnaly they move towards a nearby river and throw the rain-bride into the river.

As said above this festival which likely has analogues in some other cultures across the world, is rooted in rituals of the old days.