🇮🇳 India
Holi celebrates the arrival of spring on the full moon of Phalguna with bonfires the night before, then coloured powder, water and sweets. It also recalls the story of Prahlad and Holika.
Read: HoliSpring and renewal
When the days lengthen and the ground softens, people around the world celebrate.
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When the days lengthen and the ground softens, people around the world celebrate. Spring festivals welcome the return of green, flowers, light and the farming year, and they are among the most colourful of all. Holi throws powders of every colour, Nowruz sets a table with sprouts, Easter brings eggs and lilies, Hanami gathers friends under cherry blossom, May Day crowns a queen and dances around a pole, Songkran splashes water. Each has its own story, but all are about new life. Here is how different cultures greet the spring and what the customs mean to those who keep them.
What it is for
Spring marks the end of the cold, the return of growth and the start of sowing, and festivals ask for fertility and a good year. The mood is playful, as people have long stored up energy through winter and enjoy letting it out. Many spring festivals are also times for cleansing and forgiveness, as in Holi and Easter, and for renewal of promises and friendships. They remind people of nature's cycle and of their place in it, and offer a chance to be outdoors together again after the long indoor season.
Common elements across cultures
Flowers, green branches and sprouted grain decorate houses and towns. Fires and water play a role: bonfires to burn winter, water to cleanse and bless. Eggs, seeds and young animals symbolise new life, and people clean their homes, put on new clothes and visit family. Public gatherings include processions, dances around a pole or fire, and games. Many cultures hold a market of seedlings or a plant exchange, and farmers bless the fields. Dates are often tied to the equinox or the first full moon after it.
Food, dress and music
Spring foods are fresh: sprouts, young greens, herbs, lamb, eggs, honey, new dairy and sweets such as gujiya, hot cross buns and simnel cake. Dress is light and bright: white at Holi, new clothes for Nowruz, floral wreaths for May Day and kimono for hanami picnics. Music is lively, with folk songs of the season, drums and pipes. Dance is common, from the maypole and the Morris dance of England to the Holi folk songs of Braj and the stick dances of the Balkans.
How it is changing
Holi and Easter egg hunts have spread far beyond their original homes, and cherry blossom forecasts are followed by millions. Climate change has shifted the timing of blossoms and plantings, and some festivals now keep an eye on the weather as much as the calendar. Cities organise parades, flower shows and markets, and many families keep the home customs of cleaning and cooking. Spring remains a gentle and hopeful festival time, with interest in local food and gardening growing across the world.
Spring and renewal around the world
🇳🇵 Nepal
Fagu Purnima is celebrated with colours in the hills, and the Bisket Jatra in Bhaktapur marks the Nepali new year in April with a chariot procession and the raising of a pole. Water balloons and coloured powder are thrown, and sweets are shared on the streets.
Read: Biska Jatra🇮🇷 Iran
Nowruz has the haft-sin table set with sprouted wheat, sumac, garlic, apples, vinegar, coins and a hyacinth, and Persian families jump over a fire at Chaharshanbe Suri, saying "give me your red, take my yellow". On the thirteenth day of Nowruz, families spend the day outdoors and throw their sprouts into running water.
Read: Haft-sin🇯🇵 Japan
Hanami, flower viewing, sees friends and families picnic beneath the cherry blossoms in March and April, and parks fill with blue tarpaulins, food and sake. The brief blossom reminds people of the fleeting nature of life.
Read: Hanami🇨🇳 China
The Qingming Festival combines tomb sweeping with outings in the new spring, kite flying and eating green rice dumplings. The Lantern Festival ends the new year.
Read: Qingming Festival🇰🇷 Korea
Cherry blossom festivals in Jinhae, azalea flower pancakes, hwajeon, on the third day of the third lunar month and kite flying on Lunar New Year are among the spring traditions. People in Seoul also gather in the parks of Yeouido to view cherry blossoms along the Han River.
Jinhae Gunhangje Festival, being writtenTraditions to start with
Questions people ask
Why are eggs a symbol of spring?
An egg contains new life and has been a symbol of rebirth in many cultures, from ancient Persia to Christian Easter. Eggs are painted, hidden, cracked and eaten at spring festivals.
Why does Holi use colours?
Colours celebrate spring's flowers, the playful love of Krishna and Radha and the joy of equality, as everyone is coloured alike. The festival is also a time to forgive.
What is the haft-sin table?
The Persian new year table with seven items beginning with the letter sin, such as sprouts, apples and garlic, each symbolising an aspect of life like health, beauty or patience.
Is spring in March everywhere?
Only in the northern hemisphere, and the date depends on the calendar. In the southern hemisphere, spring starts in September, and in the tropics the seasons follow rains rather than temperature.
What is a maypole?
A tall pole, decorated with flowers and ribbons, around which dancers weave in a pattern on May Day. It is a custom found in many parts of Europe.
About this page
Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
Spring and renewal on EveryParampara
The traditions written up so far, best known first.
RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
🇺🇿 Bukhara, UzbekistanNavruzNavroʻz
The spring equinox festival celebrated across Uzbekistan with sumalak and family visits.Seasonal · Sweets given and shared
🇪🇸 Valencia, SpainCremà
The ceremonial burning of large artistic street monuments across the Valencian communityFestival
🇨🇳 Dali, ChinaThird Month Fair三月街
A mountain-foot bazaar, festival, and sports gathering among the Bai in YunnanFestival
🇯🇵 Takayama, JapanTakayama Festival高山祭
Twin seasonal shrine festivals in Japan famed for elaborate lantern-lit floatsFestival
🇳🇱 NetherlandsBloemencorso Bollenstreek
An annual mid-April parade of flower-covered floats across the Dutch bulb regionFestival
🇵🇰 Lahore, Pakistan and 1 moreBasant
A Punjabi spring festival marked by rooftop kite flying, yellow clothing and fairsFestival · Sweets given and shared
🇵🇸 Jericho, PalestineNabi Musaٱلنَّبِي مُوْسَى
An annual Palestinian Muslim pilgrimage and festival honoring the prophet MosesSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇹🇭 Bangkok, ThailandSongkranสงกรานต์
The three-day Thai New Year festival marked by water rituals and blessings for eldersFestival
🇯🇵 JapanHigan彼岸
A Japanese Buddhist week of reflection and ancestor remembrance at the equinoxesSpiritual
🇯🇵 Tokyo, JapanJapanese New Year正月
An annual celebration of renewal, seasonal foods, and bell ringing across JapanSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇳 IndiaSarhul
A spring new year festival honoring nature and Sal blossoms across JharkhandSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇪 Uisneach, Ireland and 1 moreBeltaneBealtaine
A Gaelic first-of-summer festival of bonfires, May flowers and feasting on 1 MaySeasonal
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreSeharane
A Kurdish Jewish festival of campfires, circle dances and shared foodFestival
🇧🇩 Dhaka, BangladeshPohela Falgunপহেলা ফাল্গুন
A Bangladeshi festival welcoming the first day of spring with music and flowersSeasonal
🇧🇬 Kazanlak, BulgariaRose FestivalФестивал на розата
An annual harvest celebration of damask roses across the Rose Valley of BulgariaFestival
🇩🇪 Cologne, Germany and 2 moreGerman CarnivalKarneval
Pre-Lenten street parades, costume balls and local revels across German-speaking lands.Festival · Feasts and festival meals
🇱🇺 Luxembourg and 3 moreBuergbrennen
A bonfire festival marking the end of winter on the first Sunday of Lent in LuxembourgSeasonal
🇬🇷 GreeceMagiritsaΜαγειρίτσα
A Greek lamb offal soup eaten after the midnight Easter service to break the fastTable custom · Fasting and breaking the fast
🇱🇹 LithuaniaUžgavėnės
A Lithuanian winter-ending festival of masks, mock battles and pancakesFestival
🇳🇵 Bhaktapur, NepalBiska Jatra𑐧𑐶𑐳𑑂𑐎𑐵𑑅 𑐖𑐵𑐟𑑂𑐬𑐵
An annual solar new year festival in Nepal with chariot pulls and tall wooden poles.Festival
🇮🇪 Ireland and 5 moreSaint Patrick's DayLá Fhéile Pádraig
An annual Irish holiday of parades, church services, green dress and shamrocksFestival
🇺🇸 New York, United States and 1 moreEaster parade
A festive Easter Sunday stroll featuring stylish clothes and elaborate bonnetsFestival
🇱🇹 Vilnius, Lithuania and 3 moreSaint Casimir's FairKaziuko mugė
A spring craft market and folk celebration across the historic streets of VilniusCraft
🇵🇰 PakistanChilam Joshi
A spring festival of music, dance, and prayers celebrated by the Kalash peopleFestival
🇯🇵 Tokyo, JapanKoinobori鯉のぼり
Carp-shaped windsocks flown across Japan for Children's Day in springFestival
🇻🇳 VietnamTếtTết Nguyên Đán
The Vietnamese festival of the lunar new year, welcoming spring with family gatheringsFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇦🇫 Mazar-i-Sharif, AfghanistanNowruzنوروز
The Afghan spring new year, celebrated with picnics, wheat pudding and dried fruit.Seasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇸🇮 Ptuj, Slovenia and 1 moreKurentovanje
A rite of spring and carnival in Ptuj with masked bell-ringers chasing winter awayFestival
🇨🇱 Santiago, ChileFiestas Patrias
Chile's homeland festivities celebrating national identity with music, dance, and foodCeremony
🇮🇳 Ujjain, India and 1 moreVikram Samvatविक्रमसंवत्
A lunisolar Hindu calendar of Nepal and India, its years counted 57 ahead of the GregorianSeasonal
🇧🇬 Bulgaria and 5 moreMartenitsaмартеница
Red and white yarn dolls worn from 1 March until spring shows itselfFestival
🇪🇹 Addis Ababa, EthiopiaIrreechaIrreessa
A thanksgiving festival at sacred lakes in Oromia, Ethiopia, at the end of the rainsFestival
🇦🇲 Armenia and 1 moreTrndezտրնդեզ
An Armenian fire feast forty days after Christmas, kept with bonfires and shared sweetsSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇯🇵 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
🇨🇳 Hong Kong, China and 5 moreLunar New Year
New year festivals dated by the moon, kept from East Asia to the Middle EastFestival
🇮🇷 Ashtian, Iran and 5 moreSamanuسمنو
A sweet sprouted-wheat paste stirred through the night for NowruzTable custom · Sweets given and shared
🇩🇪 Germany and 2 moreSwabian-Alemannic FastnachtFastnacht
A late-winter carnival of masks and jesters kept before Lent in the Alemannic landsFestival
🇮🇹 Italy and 5 moreEasterΠάσχα
The day Christians mark the resurrection, kept with vigils, feasts and eggsSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇹 Venice, Italy and 5 moreCarnival
A season of parades, masks and feasting in the days before LentFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇨🇭 Liestal, SwitzerlandChienbäse
A Swiss carnival night parade of blazing pinewood brooms and carts of fireFestival
🇱🇧 Lebanon and 2 moreAnnunciationΟ Ευαγγελισμός της Θεοτόκου
A Christian feast marking the angel Gabriel's message to Mary about bearing Jesus, kept on 25 March.Festival
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreSaint George's Day
A saint's feast on 23 April, kept by churches and patron nations from England to GeorgiaSpiritual
🇷🇺 Russia and 5 moreRadonitsaРа́доница (Russian), Ра́даўніца (Belarusian)
A spring day when Orthodox families visit graves, share Easter food and greet the deadSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 3 moreRogation days
Springtime Christian days of prayer, fasting, and parish boundary walks.Spiritual · Fasting and breaking the fast
🇮🇳 IndiaMonlam Prayer Festival
A Tibetan Buddhist festival of mass prayers, sacred dances and ritual offeringsSpiritual
🇹🇭 Bangkok, ThailandSongkranสงกรานต์
The Thai solar New Year marked by temple rites, elder blessings and water throwingSeasonal
🇩🇪 Germany and 5 moreNeed-fire
A ritual fire kindled by friction to ward off cattle plague, disease and harmFolklore
🇸🇾 Syria and 6 moreKha b'Nisanܚܕ ܒܢܝܣܢ
A spring new year on 1 April, kept with parades, poems and dancing by AssyriansFestival
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Vikram Samvat: Westindischer Maler um 1400, Public domain, source
- Holi: Jitenderasingh, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Hanami: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Beltane: Stefan Schäfer, Lich, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- May Day: Bryan Ledgard, CC BY 2.0, source
- Passover: User:RadRafe~commonswiki, Public domain, source
- Chienbäse: Christof Berger, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Nowruz: Katzenfee50, CC0, source
- Sham Ennessim: Ikonact, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Navruz: dalbera, CC BY 2.0, source
- Cremà: Paula Ramírez Morant, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Pohela Falgun: Ashraf Siddiqui, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Rose Festival: Animsaj, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- German Carnival: Neva Micheva, CC BY 2.5, source
- Buergbrennen: luxpim, CC BY 2.0, source
- Magiritsa: Andrew Dalby, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Užgavėnės: Algirdas at Lithuanian Wikipedia, GFDL, source
- Biska Jatra: Davide Mauro, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Saint Patrick's Day: rannṗáirtí anaiṫnid ( coṁrá ), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Easter parade: Meister der Palastkapelle in Palermo, Public domain, source
- Saint Casimir's Fair: Sirex at Lithuanian Wikipedia, Public domain, source
- Chilam Joshi: Jugni, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Koinobori: 663highland, CC BY 2.5, source
- Tết: vi:Lưu Ly, Public domain, source
- Nowruz: Peretz Partensky, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Kurentovanje: Aleš Kravos, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Fiestas Patrias: Osmar Valdebenito, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Third Month Fair: ZhaoScorpio, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Takayama Festival: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Bloemencorso Bollenstreek: W. Bulach, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Basant: Haseeb Ahmad Farooqi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Nabi Musa: Mujaddara, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Songkran: ผู้สร้างสรรค์ผลงาน/ส่งข้อมูลเก็บในคลังข้อมูลเสรีวิกิมีเดียคอมมอนส์ - เ, CC BY 3.0, source
- Higan: Kakidai, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Japanese New Year: No machine-readable author provided. Sixgimic assumed (based on copyri, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Sarhul: Gurpreet Singh Ranchi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Martenitsa: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Irreecha: Mohammed Kassahun, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Trndez: Armineaghayan, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Tango no sekku: tiseb, CC BY 2.0, source
- Lunar New Year: Flying Pharmacist, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Samanu: Myone63, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Swabian-Alemannic Fastnacht: Photo: Andreas Praefcke, CC BY 3.0, source
- Easter: Piero della Francesca, Public domain, source
- Carnival: Etienne Le Cocq, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Saint George's Day: Raphael, Public domain, source
- Radonitsa: Perohanych, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kha b'Nisan: Athrakado, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Annunciation: El Greco, Public domain, source
- Rogation days: Ray Trevena, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Monlam Prayer Festival: Evan-Lovely, CC BY 2.0, source
- Songkran: Khunmoohan, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Need-fire: Unknown author, Public domain, source