Festivals and celebrations
The days a community stops, gathers and celebrates.
Festivals and celebrations are the days when a community stops its work, dresses up, eats together and makes noise. They may mark a season, a saint, a victory or just the pleasure of being together. From Carnival and Holi to Songkran and Oktoberfest, they show a place at its most generous and expressive. Many have religious roots, others are civic or seasonal, and a good number began as local fairs and grew famous. This page lists them by country, month and meaning, with notes on food, costume and music.
What makes a festival
Most festivals share a few features: a set date, a procession or gathering, special food, music and dance, a costume or colour, and an element of play. Some invert the usual order, letting servants command and the young tease the old, as at Carnival and Purim. Others are solemn, with lamps, silence or fasting. Whatever the tone, a festival gives people a shared memory, and the preparations, from cooking to costume making, are part of the pleasure.
Local and global
A festival that began in one village may now draw millions, and migrants carry festivals to new countries, where they take on new forms. Diwali is celebrated in London and Singapore, St Patrick's Day in Buenos Aires and Tokyo, Lunar New Year in Sydney and New York. At the same time, many small local festivals survive, and EveryParampara records these too, because a village fair is as much a part of the world's heritage as a great carnival.
About this page
Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Background on Festivals and celebrations (kind of tradition). Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
🇮🇩 Jakarta, Indonesia and 3 moreRijsttafel
Many small dishes around rice: a colonial-era banquet still served in the NetherlandsTable custom · Feasts and festival meals
🇱🇻 Riga, LatviaZiemassvētki
Latvia's midwinter festival of solstice customs, mumming and tree decorationSeasonal
🇩🇪 Cologne, Germany and 2 moreGerman CarnivalKarneval
Pre-Lenten street parades, costume balls and local revels across German-speaking lands.Festival · Feasts and festival meals
🇹🇷 Istanbul, Turkey and 5 moreSimit
A sesame-encrusted ring bread sold by street vendors across Turkey and the former Ottoman lands.Table custom · Breakfast
🇱🇮 Vaduz, LiechtensteinLiechtenstein National DayStaatsfeiertag Liechtenstein
Liechtenstein's national holiday celebrated with castle speeches, bonfires and fireworksCeremony
🇬🇧 Abbots Bromley, United KingdomAbbots Bromley Horn Dance
A September folk dance in an English village featuring dancers with reindeer antlers and a hobby horse.Performance
🇨🇳 Hong Kong, China and 5 moreLunar New Year
New year festivals dated by the moon, kept from East Asia to the Middle EastFestival
🇺🇸 Cleveland, United StatesClambake
Shellfish steamed over seaweed in a pit, eaten outdoors along the New England coastTable custom · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇳 Baripada, IndiaChhau dance
A masked dance of eastern India, blending martial steps with epic storiesPerformance
🇮🇳 Mumbai, IndiaDahi Handi
A Hindu festival sport where teams build human towers to break suspended curd potsFestival
🇮🇹 Rome, Italy and 5 moreAll Souls' Day
A Christian observance on 2 November for prayer and remembrance of those who have died.Spiritual
🇮🇳 Haridwar, IndiaKumbh MelaKumbha Mēlā
A major Hindu riverside pilgrimage held across four rotating holy cities in IndiaSpiritual
🇨🇴 Cali, ColombiaCali FairLa Feria de Cali
A six-day Colombian celebration of salsa music, street parades, and regional cultureFestival
🇰🇪 Kenya and 1 moreAdumuEnkipaata
A Maasai warrior dance of high jumps from a circle, done at weddings and ritesPerformance
🇭🇹 Port-au-Prince, HaitiHaitian CarnivalKanaval
Haiti's annual street festival of music, satirical plays and costumed paradesFestival · Tea-time and snacking customs
🇬🇧 United KingdomPlough Monday
England's old start of the farming year, kept with ploughs, straw bears and sword dancesSeasonal
🇧🇬 Bulgaria and 3 moreBanitsaБаница
A layered Bulgarian cheese pastry baked for morning meals and holiday fortunesTable custom · Breakfast
🇧🇴 La Paz, Bolivia and 1 moreAlasitasFeria de la Alasita
A month-long Bolivian fair where people exchange miniatures to invite good fortuneFestival
🇵🇷 Puerto Rico and 1 moreParranda
A Puerto Rican Christmas custom of night-time visits with songs, food and drinkPerformance · Supper
🇮🇩 Bali, IndonesiaTumpengꦠꦸꦩ꧀ꦥꦼꦁ (Javanese); ᬢᬸᬫ᭄ᬧᭂᬂ (Balinese)
A tall cone of rice ringed with side dishes, central to Javanese ceremonies and partiesTable custom · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇸 Vestmannaeyjar, IcelandÞjóðhátíð
An annual outdoor island festival of concerts, bonfires and hillside singing in IcelandFestival
🇮🇳 IndiaSarhul
A spring new year festival honoring nature and Sal blossoms across JharkhandSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 4 moreSaffron bun
A golden, spiced yeast roll flavoured with saffron, baked for festive and holy daysTable custom · Tea-time and snacking customs
🇮🇳 Puri, IndiaNabakalebaraନବ କଳେବର (Navakalevara)
A rare ritual in Puri where the wooden idols of four Hindu deities are replaced with new carvings every twelve to nineteSpiritual
🇮🇳 Kanchipuram, IndiaPanguni UthiramPaṅkuṉi Uttiram
A Tamil Hindu festival celebrating divine weddings and the virtues of married lifeSpiritual
🇬🇧 Lewes, United KingdomLewes Bonfire
A Sussex town marks 5 November with torchlit processions, burning crosses and bonfiresFestival
🇮🇳 Kochi, IndiaVallam Kalivaḷḷaṃ kaḷi
A traditional canoe racing festival held across the waters of Kerala during OnamGame
🇮🇷 Iran and 5 moreEid al-Ghadirعید الغدیر
A Shia Muslim festival of prayer, gifts and shared meals, kept on 18 Dhu al-HijjahSpiritual
🇬🇧 Yorkshire, United Kingdom and 3 moreMischief NightNoson Ddrygioni (Welsh); Oidhche nan Cleas (Scottish Gaelic)
An evening of pranks and tricks, kept before Halloween or Guy Fawkes NightFestival
🇬🇧 Llangollen, United Kingdom and 5 moreEisteddfod
A Welsh festival of poetry and music competitions, featuring the chairing and crowning of winning bards.Festival
🇮🇱 Israel and 2 moreSukkahסוכה
A temporary hut with a branch roof, lived in for the seven days of SukkotSpiritual
🇵🇹 Coimbra, PortugalPraxePraxe Académica
A set of student initiation rituals and traditions in Portuguese universities.Rite of passage
🇲🇲 Yangon, Myanmar and 1 moreShinbyuရှင်ပြု
A Burmese Buddhist rite in which a boy goes forth as a novice monk, often at New YearRite of passage
🇮🇷 Urmia, IranKurdish danceGovend (گۆڤەند)
Circle dances of the Kurds, led by handkerchief twirlers, for weddings and NewrozPerformance
🇮🇳 IndiaGanga Dussehra
A ten-day Hindu river festival celebrating the descent of the Ganges to earthSpiritual
🇮🇳 Barsana, IndiaLathmar Holi
A playful spring festival in two Uttar Pradesh towns where women strike men with sticks to reenact a divine legend.Festival
🇮🇳 Ahmedabad, India and 1 moreGarbaगर्भ
A Gujarati circle dance performed around a sacred flame during the festival of NavratriPerformance
🇬🇭 Bonwire, Ghana and 1 moreKente clothNwentoma
Hand-woven Ghanaian cloth of silk and cotton strips, worn for ceremonies and graduationsDress
🇨🇳 China and 6 moreRed envelope紅包 / 红包 (hóngbāo)
Money in a red packet, given at Lunar New Year, weddings and other big daysEtiquette
🇮🇳 IndiaSanjhi
Autumn devotion honoring a mother goddess and sacred floor art of Radha and KrishnaSpiritual
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreThimithiதீமிதி
A South Indian firewalking festival honouring Draupadi Amman before DeepavaliSpiritual
🇷🇼 RwandaKwita Izina
Rwanda's yearly ceremony naming newborn mountain gorillas, after a baby-naming customRite of passage
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreChapchar KutChapchâr Kût
A spring festival of dance and food kept by the Mizo people in Mizoram, India.Festival
🇮🇳 Sambalpur, IndiaSitalsasthiଶୀତଳ ଷଷ୍ଠୀ
A festival in western Odisha re-enacting the divine wedding of Shiva and ParvatiFestival
🇼🇸 Samoa and 1 moreʻAva ceremony
A solemn ritual of shared drink and oratory in Samoa and Tonga to mark chiefly titles and important gatherings.Festival
🇺🇸 United StatesLūʻau
A Hawaiian feast of kālua pig and poi, eaten by hand outdoors with music and hulaTable custom · Feasts and festival meals
🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan and 3 moreObonお盆 (Obon)
A Japanese Buddhist festival honoring the spirits of ancestors through dance, light, and family reunion.Festival
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreCarol service
A Christmas church service of seasonal hymns, scripture readings and candlelightSpiritual
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Kwita Izina: Thesmiler de, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Saffron bun: Nenniu, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Þjóðhátíð: Drumstick21, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Alasitas: Ener6, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Banitsa: Sheku80, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Haitian Carnival: User:Doron, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kumbh Mela: Yosarian, CC BY 3.0, source
- Dahi Handi: AKS.9955, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Cali Fair: Jyon, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Liechtenstein National Day: Förkle, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- German Carnival: Neva Micheva, CC BY 2.5, source
- Simit: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Obon: Batholith, Public domain, source
- Chapchar Kut: Ramesh Lalwani, CC BY 2.0, source
- Sanjhi: Veer jindal, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Garba: anurag agnihotri, CC BY 2.0, source
- Lathmar Holi: Original: Sachinghai09 Derivative work: Radomianin, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ganga Dussehra: Barry Silver, CC BY 2.0, source
- Shinbyu: Lionslayer, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Vallam Kali: Arun Sinha, CC BY 2.0, source
- Panguni Uthiram: Krithika.R.S, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Nabakalebara: Jitpattnaikpuri, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Sarhul: Gurpreet Singh Ranchi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- All Souls' Day: William-Adolphe Bouguereau, Public domain, source
- Abbots Bromley Horn Dance: Caeciliusinhorto, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Queima das Fitas: Fotografía realizada por: Ángel Serrano Sánchez de León, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- ʻAva ceremony: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Kurdish dance: Kaiwan Moradi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kente cloth: ZSM, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Red envelope: Oldie~commonswiki, Public domain, source
- Lūʻau: Ralawami, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Lewes Bonfire: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Eid al-Ghadir: khamenei.ir, CC BY 4.0, source
- Plough Monday: Rawpixel, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Adumu: K15photos, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Lunar New Year: Flying Pharmacist, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Parranda: Marine 69-71, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Rijsttafel: Takeaway, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Clambake: inuyaki.com, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Mischief Night: Roseohioresident, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tumpeng: brother-harahap, CC BY 2.0, source
- Chhau dance: Skasish, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Eisteddfod: Llywelyn2000, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Sukkah: Gilabrand, CC BY-SA 3.0, source