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.
🇬🇧 London, United Kingdom and 6 moreBoishakhi Melaবৈশাখী মেলা
A Bengali New Year fair in London each May, with a parade, music and food stallsFestival
🇭🇺 Hungary and 1 morePentecostπεντηκοστή (pentēkostē)
The Christian feast of the Holy Spirit, kept fifty days after EasterSpiritual
🇧🇬 Bulgaria and 5 moreMartenitsaмартеница
Red and white yarn dolls worn from 1 March until spring shows itselfFestival
🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreKoulourakiaΚουλουράκια
Sweet butter pastries baked for Greek Easter and shaped into rings and braidsTable custom · Sweets given and shared
🇪🇸 Alicante, SpainBonfires of Saint John in AlicanteFogueres de Sant Joan
A midsummer festival of towering satirical monuments, music and fire in AlicanteFestival
🇳🇴 NorwayBunad
Norway's festive dress, tied to a home district and worn from weddings to 17 MayDress
🇧🇬 Bulgaria and 4 moreKukeriкукери (kukeri)
Masked and belled figures who tour Bulgarian villages at New Year to drive off harmSpiritual
🇩🇪 Aachen, Germany and 4 moreStraw bearStrohbär
A carnival figure wrapped in straw, paraded through German towns to mark the end of winter.Festival
🇪🇸 Buñol, SpainLa Tomatina
A one-hour tomato fight in Buñol on the last Wednesday of AugustFestival
🇵🇱 PolandWigilia
Poland's meatless Christmas Eve supper, begun when the first star appearsTable custom · Feasts and festival meals
🇪🇸 Spain and 1 moreTió de Nadal
A Catalan Christmas tradition where a decorated log is fed and beaten to produce small gifts for children.Festival
🇪🇸 Madrid, Spain and 5 moreTwelve GrapesLas doce uvas de la suerte
A grape for every chime at midnight on 31 December, welcoming the new yearFestival · Tea-time and snacking customs
🇬🇧 United KingdomCalennig
Welsh children carry a decorated apple door to door and sing for New Year giftsFestival
🇮🇹 Venice, ItalyFesta del RedentoreFesta del Redentor
Venice's July festival of fireworks over the water, kept in thanks for the plague's endFestival
🇮🇸 Iceland and 2 moreYuleġēol (Old English); jól (Old Norse)
The Germanic midwinter festival that Christmas grew out of, kept today by HeathensSpiritual
🇷🇸 Serbia and 3 moreKoloКоло
A South Slavic circle dance of linked hands, kept at weddings and gatheringsPerformance
🇮🇹 Naples, Italy and 5 moreNativity scene
A seasonal set of figures showing Jesus's birth, put up by Christians at ChristmasFestival
🇮🇹 Foligno, ItalyGiostra della Quintana
A June and September joust in Foligno, where ten knights spear ringsFestival
🇪🇸 SpainCorrefoc
Devil-costumed fire runs through the streets of Catalan and Valencian festival townsFestival
🇦🇹 Austria and 5 moreKrampus
Saint Nicholas's horned companion, who comes for misbehaving children on 5 DecemberFolklore
🇷🇺 RussiaRussian wedding traditions
A Russian wedding runs two days to a week, with ransom games, crowns and toastsRite of passage
🇺🇦 Chernivtsi, Ukraine and 1 moreVyshyvankaвишиванка (Ukrainian), вышыванка (Belarusian)
An embroidered shirt of Ukraine and Belarus, its patterns marking region and familyDress
🇬🇧 Lewes, United KingdomLewes Bonfire
A Sussex town marks 5 November with torchlit processions, burning crosses and bonfiresFestival
🇬🇧 United KingdomPlough Monday
England's old start of the farming year, kept with ploughs, straw bears and sword dancesSeasonal
🇫🇮 FinlandChristmas in Finlandjoulu
A quiet midwinter festival of saunas, grave candles and table casseroles across FinlandSeasonal · Dinner
🇬🇧 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
🇷🇸 Guča, SerbiaGuča Trumpet FestivalФестивал трубача у Гучи
A weekend brass band competition and folk festival in western SerbiaFestival
🇧🇪 Binche, BelgiumCarnival of BincheCarnaval de Binche
A Belgian pre-Lenten festival known for masked dancers and orange tossingFestival
🇧🇪 Antwerp, Belgium and 2 moreOmmegangommegang (Dutch)
Medieval town processions of the Low Countries, with giants, guilds and horsesCeremony
🇦🇹 Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Austria and 2 moreSilent NightStille Nacht, heilige Nacht
A Christmas carol composed in Austria in 1818, now sung worldwide as a symbol of peace.Performance
🇩🇪 Germany and 2 moreSwabian-Alemannic FastnachtFastnacht
A late-winter carnival of masks and jesters kept before Lent in the Alemannic landsFestival
🇬🇷 Greece and 5 moreEpiphany
A January feast of the Magi, the Jordan baptism and the Cana miracle, kept by ChristiansSpiritual
🇺🇦 UkraineTraditional Ukrainian wedding
A wedding spread over many days, with matchmaking, bread, wreaths and songRite of passage
🇬🇧 Llangollen, United Kingdom and 5 moreEisteddfod
A Welsh festival of poetry and music competitions, featuring the chairing and crowning of winning bards.Festival
🇬🇧 Cardiff, United KingdomGorsedd CymruGorsedd Cymru (yr Orsedd)
A Welsh society of poets and writers that holds ceremonies at the National Eisteddfod to honour cultural achievements.Festival
🇮🇹 Italy and 5 moreEasterΠάσχα
The day Christians mark the resurrection, kept with vigils, feasts and eggsSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇧🇾 BelarusBatlejkaБатле́йка
A two-level puppet booth from Belarus, playing Nativity and folk scenes at ChristmasPerformance
🇨🇭 Basel, SwitzerlandCarnival of BaselBasler Fasnacht
A 72-hour masked carnival of drums, flutes and satire in northern SwitzerlandFestival
🇵🇹 Coimbra, PortugalPraxePraxe Académica
A set of student initiation rituals and traditions in Portuguese universities.Rite of passage
🇱🇺 Luxembourg City, LuxembourgSchueberfouer
An annual late-summer funfair and historic fair held in Luxembourg CityFestival
🇱🇹 Vilnius, Lithuania and 3 moreSaint Casimir's FairKaziuko mugė
A spring craft market and folk celebration across the historic streets of VilniusCraft
🇪🇸 Valencia, SpainFallasFalles de València
Valencia's five-day March fiesta of giant paper figures and bonfiresFestival
🇬🇷 Patras, GreecePatras CarnivalPatrino karnavali
A winter carnival of parades, street games and satirical floats in western GreeceFestival
🇮🇹 Florence, ItalyCalcio storico fiorentino
A fierce Renaissance ball game played on sand between four Florentine districtsGame
🇧🇪 Bruges, BelgiumProcession of the Holy BloodHeilig Bloedprocessie
An annual sacred parade and historical pageant through the streets of Bruges, Belgium.Spiritual
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreChristmas dinner
The festive family meal of Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, with roast meats and puddingsTable custom · Dinner
🇳🇱 NetherlandsBloemencorso Bollenstreek
An annual mid-April parade of flower-covered floats across the Dutch bulb regionFestival
🇳🇱 Noordwijk, Netherlands and 1 moreBloemencorso
Annual parades of flower-covered floats and boats in the Netherlands and BelgiumFestival
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Patras Carnival: www.infocenterpatras.gr, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Gilles: Marie-Claire, CC BY 3.0, source
- Boishakhi Mela: Ripon Miah, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Pentecost: See The Holy Land, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Martenitsa: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Koulourakia: foodistablog, CC BY 2.0, source
- Bunad: Wolfmann, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kukeri: Nenko Lazarov, CC BY 2.5, source
- Straw bear: Photo: Andreas Praefcke, CC BY 3.0, source
- La Tomatina: Graham McLellan, CC BY 2.0, source
- Wigilia: Przykuta, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Queima das Fitas: Fotografía realizada por: Ángel Serrano Sánchez de León, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Twelve Grapes: Ralf Roletschek, GFDL 1.2, source
- Festa del Redentore: Photographer: Riccardo Speziari, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Yule: Robert Chambers, Public domain, source
- Kolo: Sasa.mazinjanin, Public domain, source
- Nativity scene: Yvonne Bentele, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Giostra della Quintana: Alb.Maur, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Krampus: Naturpuur, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Correfoc: Calvesklein, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Russian wedding traditions: GeorgeLouis, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Vyshyvanka: Vasily Andreevich Tropinin, Public domain, source
- Lewes Bonfire: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Plough Monday: Rawpixel, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Mischief Night: Roseohioresident, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Ommegang: Zorro2212, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Silent Night: Franz Xaver Gruber (1787–1863), Public domain, source
- Swabian-Alemannic Fastnacht: Photo: Andreas Praefcke, CC BY 3.0, source
- Epiphany: Gentile da Fabriano, Public domain, source
- Traditional Ukrainian wedding: Пимоненко, Николай Корнильевич, Public domain, source
- Eisteddfod: Llywelyn2000, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Gorsedd Cymru: Els Pam Pels, CC0, source
- Easter: Piero della Francesca, Public domain, source
- Batlejka: user:Хомелка, CC BY 3.0, source
- Christmas dinner: Austin McGee, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Bloemencorso: Dekraaie, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Bloemencorso Bollenstreek: W. Bulach, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Procession of the Holy Blood: Cbl62, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Calcio storico fiorentino: Stradanus / After Giorgio Vasari, Public domain, source
- Fallas: Goodnighmoon, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Saint Casimir's Fair: Sirex at Lithuanian Wikipedia, Public domain, source
- Schueberfouer: Denise Hastert, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Carnival of Basel: Claude TRUONG-NGOC, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Guča Trumpet Festival: svickova, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Christmas in Finland: Uploaded by Sigketill, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tió de Nadal: Slastic, Public domain, source
- Bonfires of Saint John in Alicante: Fernando Pastor, CC BY 2.0, source