Heritage news
ArtsTwo weekends of Oktoberfest fun begin tonight at American German ClubArtsTwo weekends of Oktoberfest fun begin tonight at American German ClubArtsTwo weekends of Oktoberfest fun begin tonight at American German ClubArtsOur Delaware Cultural Festival 2026Festivals60 years of history celebrated at Autumn Leaves FestivalSeasonsWeekly roundup: Hicks Canyon Elementary students celebrate language and culture during Mid-Autumn FestivalTableExclusive | Fuggedabout Little Italy! NYC’s hidden Italian enclaves are the real deal — from antipasto to zeppoleHoly daysBigger & Better Than Ever: Laxmi & Chef Kunal Kapur Return With ‘Diwali Delights’ Season 2Holy daysAIA’s Dussehra Diwali Dhamaka 2026 To Bring Indian Cultural Celebrations To CaliforniaHoly daysAssociation of Indo Americans Hosts Dussehra Diwali Dhamaka 2026 in PleasantonArtsTwo weekends of Oktoberfest fun begin tonight at American German ClubArtsTwo weekends of Oktoberfest fun begin tonight at American German ClubArtsTwo weekends of Oktoberfest fun begin tonight at American German ClubArtsOur Delaware Cultural Festival 2026Festivals60 years of history celebrated at Autumn Leaves FestivalSeasonsWeekly roundup: Hicks Canyon Elementary students celebrate language and culture during Mid-Autumn FestivalTableExclusive | Fuggedabout Little Italy! NYC’s hidden Italian enclaves are the real deal — from antipasto to zeppoleHoly daysBigger & Better Than Ever: Laxmi & Chef Kunal Kapur Return With ‘Diwali Delights’ Season 2Holy daysAIA’s Dussehra Diwali Dhamaka 2026 To Bring Indian Cultural Celebrations To CaliforniaHoly daysAssociation of Indo Americans Hosts Dussehra Diwali Dhamaka 2026 in Pleasanton
EveryParampara

Games, sport and play

Traditional sport, children's games, martial arts and contests.

Games, sport and play include the traditional contests, children's games and martial arts that communities have played for centuries: kabaddi in India, sumo in Japan, buzkashi in Afghanistan, mancala across Africa, hopscotch and marbles everywhere. Some are tied to festivals, such as Naadam in Mongolia or Highland games in Scotland, while others are simple pastimes of the street and the playground. They teach skill, courage and fair play, and some, such as martial arts, carry a philosophy. EveryParampara follows them by country and occasion.

Contests with a festival

Many traditional sports belong to a festival day: horse racing and wrestling at Naadam, bull leaping in Minoan Crete, the cheese roll at Cooper's Hill, kite fighting on Makar Sankranti, dragon boat racing at Duanwu. They bring the whole community out to watch, and winners are celebrated, though taking part counts for as much as winning. Some have become international sports, while others stay local and are preserved by clubs and enthusiasts.

Children and play

Children's games pass from one generation to the next without any written rules, with rhymes, counting-out songs and skipping games that appear, with variations, around the world. Board games such as chess, go, pachisi and mancala are among the oldest known. Playing them is a way to learn a culture's patterns of thinking, and many are now played online as well as on the street. They are among the most democratic of traditions, requiring few tools.

About this page

Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Background on Games, sport and play (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.

RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
MealBreakfastLunchDinnerSupperTea-time and snacking customsTea, coffee and drinking ceremoniesSweets given and sharedFeasts and festival mealsFasting and breaking the fast
🇳🇬 Argungu, NigeriaArgungu Fishing Festival A four-day gathering in Nigeria where thousands compete to land giant river fishFestival 🇮🇳 Anandpur Sahib, IndiaHola Mohallaਹੋਲਾ-ਮਹੱਲਾ A three-day Sikh festival of martial arts, poetry, shared meals and grand processionsFestival 🇹🇳 Douz, TunisiaInternational Festival of the Sahara A four-day gathering celebrating desert life, horse racing and poetry in Douz, TunisiaFestival 🇮🇹 Foligno, ItalyGiostra della Quintana A June and September joust in Foligno, where ten knights spear ringsFestival 🇮🇹 Siena, ItalyPalio Traditional Italian competitions where local districts race horses, donkeys, or boats to win prizes and pride.Festival 🇮🇳 India and 2 morePehlwani A traditional discipline of clay-pit wrestling across the Indian subcontinent.Game 🇬🇧 Brockworth, United KingdomCooper's Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake A round of cheese, a steep hill, and runners chasing it down for the prizeGame 🇺🇿 Uzbekistan and 5 moreKurashкөрәш Central Asian traditional upright folk wrestling using cloth belts or towelsGame 🇮🇹 Florence, ItalyCalcio storico fiorentino A fierce Renaissance ball game played on sand between four Florentine districtsGame 🇮🇳 Mumbai, IndiaDahi Handi A Hindu festival sport where teams build human towers to break suspended curd potsFestival 🇲🇦 Rabat, Morocco and 5 moreFantasiaالفانتازيا A North African equestrian display of synchronized charging and simultaneous rifle fireGame 🇵🇰 PakistanShandur Polo Festivalشندور چوگان میلہ A three-day mountain polo competition played with freestyle rules in northern PakistanGame 🇰🇵 Pyongyang, North Korea and 4 moreMass games Disciplined, large-scale gymnastic spectacles celebrating unity and national prideCeremony 🇨🇦 Quebec City, CanadaQuebec Winter CarnivalCarnaval de Québec A midwinter celebration of snow, outdoor sports and caribou in Quebec City.Festival · Tea, coffee and drinking ceremonies 🇪🇹 Lalibela, Ethiopia and 1 moreEthiopian Christmasገና The Christian Nativity feast, marked by night vigils, white garments and field hockeySpiritual 🇬🇷 Patras, GreecePatras CarnivalPatrino karnavali A winter carnival of parades, street games and satirical floats in western GreeceFestival 🇰🇷 Seoul, South KoreaYunnori윷놀이 A Korean board and stick-tossing game played with tokens during the Lunar New YearGame 🇲🇳 Ölgii, MongoliaGolden Eagle FestivalБүргэдийн баяр An annual gathering in western Mongolia celebrating Kazakh eagle hunting and horsemanshipFestival 🇵🇰 Lahore, Pakistan and 1 moreBasant A Punjabi spring festival marked by rooftop kite flying, yellow clothing and fairsFestival · Sweets given and shared 🇺🇸 Tahlequah, United StatesCherokee National Holiday An annual gathering in Oklahoma marking the signing of the Cherokee ConstitutionFestival 🇲🇽 Acolman, Mexico and 1 morePiñata A festive decorated container broken open with a stick to scatter treats and fruitFestival 🇮🇳 Pushkar, IndiaPushkar FairKartik Mela An annual camel and livestock fair with lake pilgrimage rites in Rajasthan, IndiaFestival 🇮🇳 Kochi, IndiaVallam Kalivaḷḷaṃ kaḷi A traditional canoe racing festival held across the waters of Kerala during OnamGame 🇮🇳 Madurai, IndiaJallikattuஜல்லிக்கட்டு A traditional bull-embracing event held during harvest celebrations in Tamil NaduGame 🇮🇳 India and 5 moreKabaddi A fast South Asian contact sport where solo raiders tag defenders on a single breathGame 🇦🇺 Melbourne, AustraliaBoxing Day Test Cricket's annual Test match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, starting each 26 DecemberGame 🇹🇷 Erzurum, TurkeyJereedCirit Riders on horseback throw blunt wooden javelins at rivals in this Turkish team sportGame 🇯🇵 JapanShogi将棋 (shōgi) Japan's two-player strategy game, where captured pieces change sides and returnGame 🇹🇷 Edirne, TurkeyKırkpınar A three-day Turkish oil wrestling contest near Edirne, held each June since 1360Game 🇨🇳 China and 1 moreXiangqi象棋 A two-player game of armies and cannons, played on the points of a nine-by-ten boardGame 🇹🇷 Edirne, Turkey and 3 moreOil wrestlingYağlı güreş Oiled wrestlers in leather trousers: Turkey's national sport, centred on KırkpınarGame 🇨🇳 Ningbo, China and 2 moreMahjong麻將 A tile game from China, played by two to four people at a tableGame 🇨🇳 China and 2 moreGo圍棋 (wéiqí), 囲碁 (igo), 바둑 (baduk) Two players surround territory with black and white stones on a lined boardGame 🇯🇵 Takasaki, JapanDaruma doll達磨 (daruma) A round Japanese wishing doll: fill one eye to set a goal, the other to mark it done.Folklore 🇰🇷 South Korea and 1 moreJegichagi제기차기 A paper shuttlecock kicked and kept in the air, a winter game for Korean childrenGame 🇰🇷 South KoreaJwibullori쥐불놀이 A Korean New Year game of whirling fire-cans to clear fields and wish good luckGame 🇬🇷 Olympia, GreeceAncient Olympic Gamesτὰ Ὀλύμπια A quadrennial athletic festival held in ancient Greece to honor the god ZeusGame 🇬🇷 Greece and 5 moreKnucklebones An ancient hand game of tossing, catching, and scooping small bones or stonesGame 🇬🇷 Olympia, GreeceHeraean Games An ancient Greek festival of running races for unmarried young women at OlympiaGame 🇩🇪 Kiel, GermanyKiel WeekKieler Woche A week of yacht racing, tall ships and waterfront music on the Kiel FjordGame 🇰🇭 Phnom Penh, Cambodia and 3 moreBokatorល្បុក្កតោ (lbŏkkâtaô) Cambodia's battlefield martial art of strikes, locks and weapons, now a ring sportGame 🇬🇧 Goodwood, United KingdomGoodwood Festival of Speed A yearly British motorsport festival where cars and bikes race up a hill in West SussexFestival 🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreShoe throwing The act of hurling footwear for sport, wedding luck, protest or overhead display.Folklore 🇫🇷 FranceLa soule A rough medieval ball game from Normandy and Picardy played between parishes on religious holidays.Game 🇯🇵 Japan and 5 moreHouse A traditional children's make-believe game of acting out domestic family rolesGame 🇧🇦 Kupres, Bosnia and HerzegovinaMowing on KupresStrljanica A July scythe-mowing contest on the Strljanica meadow at Kupres, kept since 1687Game 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreMarco Polo A swimming pool tag game where one blindfolded player uses sound to find othersGame 🇵🇭 Bulacan, PhilippinesLuksong baka A traditional Filipino jumping game where players leap over a kneeling partner without touching them.Game
PreviousMore traditions

Photo credits on this page

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

The weekly EveryParampara

Every week: one tradition from somewhere new, what is being celebrated around the world this week, and one idea explained.