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.
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreReunion dinner團圓飯
A family gathering meal on lunar new year's eve, kept in China and VietnamTable custom · Dinner
🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan and 3 moreObonお盆 (Obon)
A Japanese Buddhist festival honoring the spirits of ancestors through dance, light, and family reunion.Festival
🇨🇳 Yining, China and 1 moreMeshrepمەشرەپ
A Uyghur gathering of music, poetry, dance and moral counsel at harvest and weddingsPerformance
🇨🇳 Dali, ChinaThird Month Fair三月街
A mountain-foot bazaar, festival, and sports gathering among the Bai in YunnanFestival
🇰🇷 South Korea and 1 moreDoljanchi돌 (dol); 돌잔치 (doljanchi)
A Korean first-birthday rite where a baby picks an object that hints at the years aheadRite of passage
🇨🇳 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
🇨🇳 Hong Kong, China and 5 moreLunar New Year
New year festivals dated by the moon, kept from East Asia to the Middle EastFestival
🇨🇳 Meizhou Island, China and 5 moreMazu媽祖
A sea goddess of the Chinese coast, asked for calm water and a safe returnSpiritual
🇯🇵 JapanTango no sekku端午の節句
A Japanese seasonal festival for children marked with carp streamers and iris leaves.Festival · Sweets given and shared
🇯🇵 Kyoto, JapanGozan no Okuribi五山送り火
Five giant bonfires lit across Kyoto's hills to bid farewell to ancestor spirits.Spiritual
🇯🇵 Chichibu, JapanChichibu Night Festival秩父夜祭
A December shrine gathering in Chichibu featuring historic Japanese festival floats.Festival
🇯🇵 Kyoto, JapanAoi Matsuri葵祭
A classical Kyoto festival with an imperial procession and ancient shrine ritualsFestival
🇹🇼 Taichung, TaiwanDajia Mazu Pilgrimage大甲媽祖遶境進香
A nine-day walking procession across central Taiwan honouring the sea goddess MazuSpiritual
🇯🇵 Japan and 4 moreBodhi Day成道会
A Buddhist observance marking the enlightenment of Gautama Buddha under the Bodhi TreeSpiritual
🇹🇼 TaiwanFlying Fish Festival飛魚祭
A months-long seasonal fishing observance kept by the Tao people of Orchid IslandSeasonal
🇯🇵 Tokyo, JapanJapanese New Year正月
An annual celebration of renewal, seasonal foods, and bell ringing across JapanSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇯🇵 Tokyo, JapanKanda Matsuri神田祭
A major Shinto festival with massive parades through the streets of central TokyoFestival
🇯🇵 Tokyo, JapanKoinobori鯉のぼり
Carp-shaped windsocks flown across Japan for Children's Day in springFestival
🇯🇵 Suwa, JapanOnbashira Festival式年造営御柱大祭
A rite in Nagano where massive fir logs are dragged down mountains and raised at shrinesSpiritual
🇰🇷 South Korea and 1 moreKorean New Year설날
A three-day Korean festival celebrating the lunisolar new year with family and feastsSeasonal
🇯🇵 Tokushima, JapanAwa Dance Festival阿波踊り
A summer street dance festival held in Tokushima during the Buddhist season of ObonFestival
🇨🇳 Suzhou, China and 3 moreDongzhi冬至
A midwinter festival celebrating the return of light with family feasts and dumplingsSeasonal · Dinner
🇲🇳 Ölgii, MongoliaGolden Eagle FestivalБүргэдийн баяр
An annual gathering in western Mongolia celebrating Kazakh eagle hunting and horsemanshipFestival
🇭🇰 Cheung Chau, Hong KongCheung Chau Bun Festival包山節
A week of vegetarian days, bun towers and a midnight scramble on a Hong Kong islandFestival
🇰🇷 Seoul, South Korea and 2 moreHangul Day한글날
South Korea's public day for Hangul, the Korean alphabet, kept on 9 OctoberFestival
🇨🇳 Nanjing, China and 4 moreSingles' Day光棍节
A day for people without a partner that grew into the world's biggest shopping eventFestival
🇨🇳 Beijing, ChinaNational Day国庆节 (guóqìng jié)
China's national day on 1 October, marking the republic's founding in 1949Ceremony
🇰🇷 Seoul, South Korea and 1 moreNational Liberation Day of Korea광복절 (Gwangbokjeol)
A public holiday on 15 August marking Korea's liberation from Japanese rule in 1945Ceremony
🇯🇵 Tokyo, JapanCulture Day文化の日 (Bunka no Hi)
Japan's 3 November holiday for the arts, learning and the Order of CultureFestival
🇰🇷 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
🇨🇳 Suzhou, China and 4 moreDongzhi Festival冬至
A winter solstice festival of family reunions, ancestor rites and sweet rice ballsSeasonal · Dinner
🇰🇵 Pyongyang, North KoreaParty Foundation Day조선로동당 창건일
A national holiday in North Korea that marks the founding of its ruling party in 1945.Ceremony
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreDajiao打醮
An annual Taoist ritual and festival seeking peace and safety for the communitySpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇯🇵 JapanTairyō-bata大漁旗
Traditional Japanese flags flown by fishing boats to celebrate a bountiful catchFestival
🇲🇳 Ölgii, MongoliaGaridгарьд
A top wrestling title in Mongolia, named for Genghis Khan's eagle and the mythical bird Garuda.Game
🇹🇼 TaiwanSimple Life Festival簡單生活節
A biennial cultural gathering in Taiwan featuring live music, markets and craftsFestival
🇲🇳 MongoliaBlue Pearl Ice FestivalХөх Cувд Mөсний Баяр
Mongolia's yearly winter ice festival of skating races, ice shooting and horse racesFestival
🇯🇵 JapanKamifūsen紙風船
Japanese paper balloons enjoyed as self-inflating toys, gifts and festival lanternsGame
🇰🇷 Busan, South KoreaBusan Sunrise Festival부산해맞이축제
A bell rung in Busan on 31 December, then the year's first sunrise at the beachSeasonal
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreTaiyin Xingjun太陰星君
The Chinese moon goddess, honoured at Mid-Autumn with incense, mooncakes and prayersSpiritual · Sweets given and shared
🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan and 3 moreObonお盆 (Obon)
A Japanese Buddhist festival honoring the spirits of ancestors through dance, light, and family reunion.Festival
🇨🇳 Yining, China and 1 moreMeshrepمەشرەپ
A Uyghur gathering of music, poetry, dance and moral counsel at harvest and weddingsPerformance
🇨🇳 Dali, ChinaThird Month Fair三月街
A mountain-foot bazaar, festival, and sports gathering among the Bai in YunnanFestival
🇰🇷 South Korea and 1 moreDoljanchi돌 (dol); 돌잔치 (doljanchi)
A Korean first-birthday rite where a baby picks an object that hints at the years aheadRite of passage
🇨🇳 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
🇨🇳 Hong Kong, China and 5 moreLunar New Year
New year festivals dated by the moon, kept from East Asia to the Middle EastFestival
🇨🇳 Meizhou Island, China and 5 moreMazu媽祖
A sea goddess of the Chinese coast, asked for calm water and a safe returnSpiritual
🇯🇵 JapanTango no sekku端午の節句
A Japanese seasonal festival for children marked with carp streamers and iris leaves.Festival · Sweets given and shared
🇯🇵 Kyoto, JapanGozan no Okuribi五山送り火
Five giant bonfires lit across Kyoto's hills to bid farewell to ancestor spirits.Spiritual
🇯🇵 Chichibu, JapanChichibu Night Festival秩父夜祭
A December shrine gathering in Chichibu featuring historic Japanese festival floats.Festival
🇯🇵 Kyoto, JapanAoi Matsuri葵祭
A classical Kyoto festival with an imperial procession and ancient shrine ritualsFestival
🇹🇼 Taichung, TaiwanDajia Mazu Pilgrimage大甲媽祖遶境進香
A nine-day walking procession across central Taiwan honouring the sea goddess MazuSpiritual
🇯🇵 Japan and 4 moreBodhi Day成道会
A Buddhist observance marking the enlightenment of Gautama Buddha under the Bodhi TreeSpiritual
🇹🇼 TaiwanFlying Fish Festival飛魚祭
A months-long seasonal fishing observance kept by the Tao people of Orchid IslandSeasonal
🇯🇵 Tokyo, JapanJapanese New Year正月
An annual celebration of renewal, seasonal foods, and bell ringing across JapanSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇯🇵 Tokyo, JapanKanda Matsuri神田祭
A major Shinto festival with massive parades through the streets of central TokyoFestival
🇯🇵 Tokyo, JapanKoinobori鯉のぼり
Carp-shaped windsocks flown across Japan for Children's Day in springFestival
🇯🇵 Suwa, JapanOnbashira Festival式年造営御柱大祭
A rite in Nagano where massive fir logs are dragged down mountains and raised at shrinesSpiritual
🇰🇷 South Korea and 1 moreKorean New Year설날
A three-day Korean festival celebrating the lunisolar new year with family and feastsSeasonal
🇯🇵 Tokushima, JapanAwa Dance Festival阿波踊り
A summer street dance festival held in Tokushima during the Buddhist season of ObonFestival
🇨🇳 Suzhou, China and 3 moreDongzhi冬至
A midwinter festival celebrating the return of light with family feasts and dumplingsSeasonal · Dinner
🇲🇳 Ölgii, MongoliaGolden Eagle FestivalБүргэдийн баяр
An annual gathering in western Mongolia celebrating Kazakh eagle hunting and horsemanshipFestival
🇭🇰 Cheung Chau, Hong KongCheung Chau Bun Festival包山節
A week of vegetarian days, bun towers and a midnight scramble on a Hong Kong islandFestival
🇰🇷 Seoul, South Korea and 2 moreHangul Day한글날
South Korea's public day for Hangul, the Korean alphabet, kept on 9 OctoberFestival
🇨🇳 Nanjing, China and 4 moreSingles' Day光棍节
A day for people without a partner that grew into the world's biggest shopping eventFestival
🇨🇳 Beijing, ChinaNational Day国庆节 (guóqìng jié)
China's national day on 1 October, marking the republic's founding in 1949Ceremony
🇰🇷 Seoul, South Korea and 1 moreNational Liberation Day of Korea광복절 (Gwangbokjeol)
A public holiday on 15 August marking Korea's liberation from Japanese rule in 1945Ceremony
🇯🇵 Tokyo, JapanCulture Day文化の日 (Bunka no Hi)
Japan's 3 November holiday for the arts, learning and the Order of CultureFestival
🇰🇷 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
🇨🇳 Suzhou, China and 4 moreDongzhi Festival冬至
A winter solstice festival of family reunions, ancestor rites and sweet rice ballsSeasonal · Dinner
🇰🇵 Pyongyang, North KoreaParty Foundation Day조선로동당 창건일
A national holiday in North Korea that marks the founding of its ruling party in 1945.Ceremony
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreDajiao打醮
An annual Taoist ritual and festival seeking peace and safety for the communitySpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇯🇵 JapanTairyō-bata大漁旗
Traditional Japanese flags flown by fishing boats to celebrate a bountiful catchFestival
🇲🇳 Ölgii, MongoliaGaridгарьд
A top wrestling title in Mongolia, named for Genghis Khan's eagle and the mythical bird Garuda.Game
🇹🇼 TaiwanSimple Life Festival簡單生活節
A biennial cultural gathering in Taiwan featuring live music, markets and craftsFestival
🇲🇳 MongoliaBlue Pearl Ice FestivalХөх Cувд Mөсний Баяр
Mongolia's yearly winter ice festival of skating races, ice shooting and horse racesFestival
🇯🇵 JapanKamifūsen紙風船
Japanese paper balloons enjoyed as self-inflating toys, gifts and festival lanternsGame
🇰🇷 Busan, South KoreaBusan Sunrise Festival부산해맞이축제
A bell rung in Busan on 31 December, then the year's first sunrise at the beachSeasonal
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreTaiyin Xingjun太陰星君
The Chinese moon goddess, honoured at Mid-Autumn with incense, mooncakes and prayersSpiritual · Sweets given and shared
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Kamifūsen: アルトクール, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Garid: hu:Burumbátor, Public domain, source
- Koinobori: 663highland, CC BY 2.5, source
- Kanda Matsuri: Jose Fernando, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Japanese New Year: No machine-readable author provided. Sixgimic assumed (based on copyri, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Bodhi Day: Shirazibustan, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Dajia Mazu Pilgrimage: Mazubobee, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Aoi Matsuri: Japanexperterna, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Third Month Fair: ZhaoScorpio, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Chichibu Night Festival: ちちびあん, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Gozan no Okuribi: J_o, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Obon: Batholith, Public domain, source
- Tairyō-bata: Wiki4423, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tango no sekku: tiseb, CC BY 2.0, source
- Busan Sunrise Festival: Busan Metropolitan city, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Meshrep: https://www.flickr.com/photos/travelingmipo/, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Doljanchi: en:User:Jamsong, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Red envelope: Oldie~commonswiki, Public domain, source
- Lunar New Year: Flying Pharmacist, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Mazu: Prince Roy, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Hangul Day: Korea.net / Korean Culture and Information Service (Jeon Han), CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- National Day: me ( w:User:pfctdayelise ), CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Culture Day: Shubert Ciencia, CC BY 2.0, source
- Yulin Dog Meat Festival: Maria Ly, CC BY 2.0, source
- Blue Pearl Ice Festival: MN5, CC0, source
- Singles' Day: Chrionexfleckeri1350, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- National Liberation Day of Korea: Korea.net / Korean Culture and Information Service, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Parents' Day: 草花写真館, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Party Foundation Day: David Stanley, CC BY 2.0, source
- Dongzhi Festival: Alpha, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Dajiao: 29cm, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Onbashira Festival: Si-take. at Japanese Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Korean New Year: Kang Byeong Kee, CC BY 3.0, source
- Awa Dance Festival: Rosino, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Dongzhi: N509FZ, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Golden Eagle Festival: Altaihunters, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Taiyin Xingjun: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Cheung Chau Bun Festival: ．怪貓．, CC BY 2.0, source