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.

🇯🇵 Tokyo, JapanCulture Day文化の日 (Bunka no Hi) Japan's 3 November holiday for the arts, learning and the Order of CultureFestival

🇵🇭 Philippines and 5 moreFirst Communion A Christian rite of passage marking a person's initial reception of the Eucharist.Rite of passage

🇦🇲 ArmeniaHoly TuesdayMegali Triti A day of church services in Holy Week that remembers biblical parables about vigilance and readiness.Festival

🇱🇹 Lithuania and 5 moreNativity of John the Baptist A Christian feast day on June 24 that marks the birth of John the Baptist and anticipates Christmas.Festival

🇮🇹 Rome, Italy and 4 moreMarian feast days Holy days across the liturgical year celebrating the life and veneration of Mary.Spiritual

🇷🇺 Mordovia, Russia and 2 moreErzya Language DayЭрзянь келень чи A yearly day for the Erzya language, held on 16 April, the birthday of Anatoli RyabovFestival

🇵🇱 Poland and 5 moreGrandparents' Day A single-day holiday kept on different dates in many countries to honour grandparentsFestival

🇰🇷 South Korea and 4 moreParents' Day어버이날 (Eobeoinal) Days set aside in several countries to thank mothers and fathersFestival

🇨🇳 Yulin, ChinaYulin Dog Meat Festival狗肉节 A ten-day June festival in Yulin, China, where dog meat is eaten with lycheesFestival · Feasts and festival meals

🇩🇪 Kiel, GermanyKiel WeekKieler Woche A week of yacht racing, tall ships and waterfront music on the Kiel FjordGame

🇮🇱 Jerusalem, IsraelJerusalem Film Festivalפסטיבל הקולנוע ירושלים / مهرجان القدس السينمائي Ten summer days of films from around the world, held in Jerusalem since 1984Performance

🇲🇾 Kuala Lumpur, MalaysiaIndependence DayHari Merdeka Malaysia's national day, marking the end of British rule on 31 August 1957Ceremony

🇮🇷 Iran and 5 moreMid-Sha'banنصف شعبان An Islamic night of prayer, forgiveness, ancestral remembrance and sweet offeringsSpiritual · Sweets given and shared

🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 4 moreTwelve Days of Christmas A festive Christian liturgical season linking Christmas Day to the eve of EpiphanySeasonal · Feasts and festival meals

🇮🇳 Madurai, India and 4 morePuthanduபுத்தாண்டு (Puttāṇṭu) The first day of the Tamil solar calendar, celebrated by Tamils with family feasts and auspicious trays.Festival · Feasts and festival meals

🇬🇷 Athens, Greece and 2 moreDionysian Mysteries Ancient Greek and Roman initiation rites of wine, ecstatic dance and spiritual rebirthSpiritual · Tea, coffee and drinking ceremonies

🇺🇸 United StatesFestivus A secular December observance marked by bare poles, voiced grievances, and wrestlingFestival · Dinner

🇵🇭 Kawit, PhilippinesIndependence DayAraw ng Kasarinlán The Philippines' national day, marked each 12 June with flags and paradesCeremony

🇪🇸 Spain and 4 moreDay of the Holy InnocentsDía de los Santos Inocentes A 28 December day of pranks and fake news, kept in the Spanish-speaking worldFestival

🇵🇱 Kraków, Poland and 5 moreDozhinkiDożynki A Slavic harvest festival of the last sheaf, a woven wreath and a shared mealSeasonal

🇪🇪 Tartu, Estonia and 5 moreEuropeade An annual gathering of folk dancers, musicians and singers across EuropeFestival

🇬🇧 Goodwood, United KingdomGoodwood Festival of Speed A yearly British motorsport festival where cars and bikes race up a hill in West SussexFestival

🇩🇰 Denmark and 1 moreQuinquagesima The last Sunday before Lent in Western Christianity, marking the start of Carnival and Shrovetide.Festival · Feasts and festival meals

🇵🇰 Islamabad, Pakistan and 1 morePakistan Dayیومِ پاکستان Pakistan's national day on 23 March: the 1940 Lahore Resolution and the 1956 constitutionCeremony

🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreAnastenariaΑναστενάρια A barefoot firewalking and dance rite honouring Saint Constantine and Saint HelenSpiritual

🇦🇫 Kabul, AfghanistanAfghan Independence Dayد افغانستان د خپلواکۍ ورځ (Pashto); روز استقلال افغانستان (Dari) Afghanistan's national day, kept on 19 August for the treaty of 1919Ceremony

🇧🇩 Dhaka, Bangladesh and 1 moreVictory Dayবিজয় দিবস Bangladesh's national day on 16 December, marking the 1971 surrender that made the stateCeremony

🇮🇳 India and 4 moreYouth Day A commemorative holiday honoring young people and youth movements worldwideCeremony 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreInternational Masturbation Month An annual May observance promoting sexual health, pleasure, and open dialogueSeasonal

🇮🇹 Italy and 5 moreTranslation of relicsTranslatio The ceremonial transfer of holy remains or relics to a new church or shrineSpiritual

🇳🇱 Wageningen, NetherlandsLiberation DayBevrijdingsdag A Dutch national holiday on 5 May marking the end of German occupation in 1945Ceremony

🇪🇸 Spain and 5 moreCavalcade of Magi A parade of the Three Magi through town on Epiphany Eve, with sweets thrown to the crowdFestival

🇹🇷 Van, Turkey and 5 moreChildren's Day An international observance supporting youth welfare, education and children's rightsCeremony

🇮🇹 Rome, Italy and 8 moreSaint Joseph's Day A 19 March feast honouring Jesus' earthly father, kept with altars and processionsSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals

🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreKing's Official Birthday A day when Commonwealth realms mark the monarch's birthday, seldom the real dateCeremony

🇨🇳 Suzhou, China and 4 moreDongzhi Festival冬至 A winter solstice festival of family reunions, ancestor rites and sweet rice ballsSeasonal · Dinner

🇹🇭 Thailand and 4 moreVessantara JatakaVessantara Jātaka A Buddhist festival celebrating the last life of the Buddha as a generous prince.Festival

🇧🇬 Bulgaria and 5 moreKoledariколядники A Slavic winter caroling custom of visiting homes with songs, masks and blessingsFestival

🇺🇸 United States and 4 moreLine-crossing ceremony A naval initiation rite marking a sailor's first voyage across the equatorRite of passage

🇮🇹 Rome, ItalyVinalia Ancient Roman festivals honoring Jupiter and Venus with wine libations to bless the harvest and ensure good weather.Festival 🇮🇹 ItalyConsualia Ancient Roman harvest festivals honoring the god of stored grain with chariot races and decorated draft animals.Festival

🇦🇱 Albania and 5 moreDodolaДодoла / Dodola A Balkan rainmaking ritual where children dressed in greenery lead processions to call for summer showers.Festival

🇲🇦 MoroccoBujloodبوجلود A masked carnival of animal skins held in Morocco just after Eid al-AdhaFestival

🇫🇷 FranceLa soule A rough medieval ball game from Normandy and Picardy played between parishes on religious holidays.Game

🇮🇳 New Delhi, IndiaKargil Vijay Diwas An annual Indian observance honouring soldiers and the end of the Kargil War.Ceremony

🇮🇳 Chandigarh, India and 3 moreGuru Nanak Gurpurabਗੁਰੂ ਨਾਨਕ ਗੁਰਪੁਰਬ The birth anniversary of Guru Nanak, kept with processions, hymns and a shared mealSpiritual

🇮🇹 Italy and 6 morePatronal festivalFiesta patronal A town's yearly feast for its patron saint, with processions, a fair and shared foodFestival 🇮🇹 Rome, ItalyMegalesiaMegalenses Ludi An ancient Roman spring festival of theatrical plays, races and feasts for CybeleFestival · Feasts and festival meals

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

Vinalia: JPS68 via photoshop, Public domain, source
Children's Day: Schekinov Alexey Victorovich, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Europeade: Niklas Lydeen, CC BY 3.0, source
Culture Day: Shubert Ciencia, CC BY 2.0, source
Erzya Language Day: Erzianj jurnalist, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Grandparents' Day: Wendy Berry, CC BY 2.0, source
Yulin Dog Meat Festival: Maria Ly, CC BY 2.0, source
Kiel Week: Arne List, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Jerusalem Film Festival: Gilabrand, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Independence Day: Ramon FVelasquez, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Day of the Holy Innocents: Attributed to Pieter Brueghel the Younger, Public domain, source
Puthandu: Amila Tennakoon, CC BY 2.0, source
Dozhinki: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Afghan Independence Day: Master Sgt. Michael O'Connor (U.S. armed forces), CC BY 2.0, source
Liberation Day: Wouter Hagens, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Victory Day: Jubair1985, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Cavalcade of Magi: Diario de Madrid, CC BY 4.0, source
Saint Joseph's Day: Guido Reni, Public domain, source
King's Official Birthday: City of Toronto, Public domain, source
Nativity of John the Baptist: Brakeet, CC0, source
Mid-Sha'ban: sayyed shahab-o- din vajedi, CC BY 4.0, source
Twelve Days of Christmas: Giotto, Public domain, source
Quinquagesima: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Dionysian Mysteries: Tilemahos Efthimiadis, CC BY 2.0, source
Anastenaria: Artkostov, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Festivus: en:User:DRosenbach Original uploader was DRosenbach at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Translation of relics: User:Vmenkov, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Dodola: Andrey Shishkin, CC BY 3.0, source
Koledari: Mikhail Germashev, Public domain, source
Line-crossing ceremony: Jules de Caudin, Public domain, source
Vessantara Jataka: Adam Jones, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Kargil Vijay Diwas: Ashoosaini2002, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
La soule: Unknown author Unknown author illustrator (based on a sketch by M.J.L., Public domain, source
Independence Day: amrufm, CC BY 2.0, source
Guru Nanak Gurpurab: Giridhar Appaji Nag Y, CC BY 2.0, source
Patronal festival: Ranieljosecastaneda, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Dongzhi Festival: Alpha, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Holy Tuesday: Brothers Dalziel / John Everett Millais, CC0, source
Pakistan Day: Imniazi001, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
First Communion: Fortepan adományozó URBÁN TAMÁS, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Goodwood Festival of Speed: Bruno Postle, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Bujlood: Hassan ahachi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
Parents' Day: 草花写真館, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Youth Day: Andrey Butko, CC BY-SA 3.0, source