The names of the festival in other languages include Azerbaijani Axır Çərşənbə (in Ardabil and Tabriz), Kurdish Kola Čowāršamba and Čowāršama Koli (in Kurdistan), Qara Chuarshanba (in Piranshahr) and Isfahani Persian Čāršambe Sorxi (in Isfahan).

A young child is assigned to reach into the jug and pull out one piece of paper and give it to the most learned or literate man in the party.

In many places, including Isfahan and towns in central Iran, it is customary to take the fortunes from a copy of the dīvān of Ḥāfeẓ, rather than from pieces of paper.

At Isfahan a small mirror and a box of collyrium, which supposedly bring good luck, are added to the ornaments in the jug (for similar customs connected with the first evening of winter, Šab-e Čella, see Enjavī, e.g., I, pp.

Burning rue seeds (Persian: اسفند, romanized: esfand; Tajik: испанд, romanized: ispand) or frankincense (kondor) at parties on the eve of Chaharshanbe Suri is a widespread practice in most regions of Persia, being considered a necessary precaution against the evil eye and malevolent spirits, devils, and genies (cf.

The ancient Iranians celebrated the festival of Frawardigan, the last five days of the year in honor of the spirits of the dead, which is today referred to as Farvardinegan.

A custom once in vogue in Tehran was to seek the intercession of the so-called "Pearl Cannon" (Tup-e Morvārid) on the occasion of Chaharshanbe Suri.

This heavy gun, which was cast by the foundry-man Ismāil Isfahāni in 1800, under the reign of Fath-Ali Shah of the Qajar dynasty, became the focus of many popular myths.

Spinsters and childless or unhappy wives climbed up and sat on the barrel or crawled under it, and mothers even made ill-behaved and troublesome children pass under it in the belief that doing so would cure their naughtiness.

Girls and women used to fasten their dakhils, pieces of a paper or cloth inscribed with wishes and prayers, to its barrel on Charshanbe Suri.

The usual snacks are nuts and dried fruits (ājīl), including salted hazelnuts, pistachios, almonds, prunes, apricots, and raisins.

Prior to changes introduced to the Iranian calendar, Chaharshanbe Suri and the Yazidi festival Çarşema Sor overlapped in dates.