Christian traditions
Christian traditions span the globe, from Ethiopian Orthodox fasts and Filipino Simbang Gabi to Swedish Lucia, Mexican posadas, Easter in Greece and the harvest services of Britain.
Christian traditions span the globe, from Ethiopian Orthodox fasts and Filipino Simbang Gabi to Swedish Lucia, Mexican posadas, Easter in Greece and the harvest services of Britain. They centre on Christmas, Lent, Holy Week and Easter, Pentecost, saints' days and the sacraments of baptism, communion, marriage and burial. Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant and Pentecostal churches each have their customs, and local cultures have shaped them in distinct ways. Here they are described with respect for the believers who keep them, and for the variety of ways of keeping them.
The church year
The year begins with Advent and builds to Christmas, then Epiphany, Lent, Holy Week and Easter, followed by Pentecost and the long season of ordinary time. Saints' days mark local patrons, and many towns have a patronal feast with a procession and fair. Orthodox churches keep their own calendar, so Christmas falls on 7 January in several countries. Fasting seasons shape food, and feasts follow.
Around the world
Christians in different countries have made the faith their own: the dawn masses of the Philippines, the carols of Wales, the gospel choirs of the American South, the white-clad pilgrims of Lalibela, the Corpus Christi carpets of flowers in Spain, and the Nativity scenes of Naples. These customs combine faith with local food, music and craft, and are among the most visible traditions of the world.
About this page
Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Background on Christian (faith). 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
🇪🇸 Seville, SpainHoly Week in SpainSemana Santa
Annual Catholic penitential processions across Spain featuring floats, robes and music to mark the Passion of Christ.Spiritual
🇵🇪 Lima, PeruLord of MiraclesSeñor de los Milagros
An October Catholic festival in Lima honouring a miraculous mural of ChristSpiritual · Sweets given and shared
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 4 moreMummers' play
A comic folk drama of staged combat, death, and revival by an eccentric doctorPerformance
🇺🇸 New York, United States and 1 moreFeast of San GennaroFesta di San Gennaro
A patronal festival of parades, street food and prayer honouring Saint JanuariusFestival · Tea-time and snacking customs
🇪🇸 Barcelona, Spain and 2 moreDiada de Sant Jordi
A Catalan feast day of literature and love, marked by giving books and red rosesFestival
🇪🇹 Ethiopia and 1 moreEnkutatashእንቁጣጣሽ
The Ethiopian New Year festival of song, yellow daisies and family feastsSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇸🇪 SwedenJul
A midwinter holiday of feast tables, doorstep gift givers, and candlelit morningsSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇨🇦 CanadaThanksgivingAction de grâce
An annual Canadian autumn holiday celebrating the harvest with family feastsFestival · Dinner
🇪🇬 Cairo, EgyptSham Ennessimشم النسيم
An Egyptian spring festival of picnics, salted fish, green onions and painted eggsSeasonal
🇮🇪 Ireland and 1 moreHandfastingceangal na lámh (Irish); pòsadh-bliadhna (Scottish Gaelic)
A couple's promise made with joined or bound hands, kept from betrothal to weddingRite of passage
🇬🇭 Cape Coast, GhanaFetu Afahye
A harvest festival of cleansing, boat races and royal durbars in Cape Coast, GhanaFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇵🇭 Kalibo, PhilippinesAti-Atihan
A week of drumbeats, street dancing, and devotion to the Infant Jesus in AklanFestival
🇫🇷 France and 5 moreRéveillon
A luxurious late-night feast that stretches until dawn across the winter holidaysTable custom · Dinner
🇮🇳 IndiaGaye holudগায়ে হলুদ
A Bengali pre-wedding ceremony where turmeric paste is applied to the bride and groomRite of passage
🇪🇸 Valencia, SpainCremà
The ceremonial burning of large artistic street monuments across the Valencian communityFestival
🇵🇭 Manila, PhilippinesHoly Week in the PhilippinesMahal na Araw
An eight-day observance of the Passion, death, and resurrection of Christ in the Philippines.Spiritual
🇵🇱 PolandEaster in Poland
A spring holiday of family breakfasts, blessed baskets, decorated eggs, and water games.Festival · Breakfast
🇺🇸 United States and 5 moreColumbus Day
An annual autumn holiday marking the 1492 arrival of Christopher Columbus in the AmericasCeremony
🇷🇺 RussiaSarafanсарафа́н
A long, flared Russian dress, the everyday wear of peasant women for centuriesDress
🇪🇹 Ethiopia and 1 moreBuheቡሄ
An Orthodox feast day celebrated with neighborhood torches, songs, and gifts of breadSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇪🇸 Barcelona, Spain and 4 moreCaganerEl Caganer
A defecating figurine placed in Catalan nativity scenes to bring good luck and fertilize the earth.Festival
🇷🇺 Moscow, RussiaChristmas in RussiaРождество Христово
An Orthodox winter feast marked by church vigils, fasting suppers and festive mealsSpiritual · Supper
🇪🇸 SpainOlentzero
A Basque Christmas tradition of a charcoal burner bringing presents in midwinterFestival
🇮🇪 Dublin, Ireland and 3 moreLittle ChristmasNollaig na mBan
A January feast day marking the close of the twelve days of ChristmasSeasonal · Dinner
🇨🇴 Valledupar, ColombiaVallenato Legend FestivalFestival de la Leyenda Vallenata
An annual gathering in Valledupar celebrating Colombian vallenato music and verseFestival
🇵🇹 Porto, PortugalFesta de São João do Porto
Porto's midsummer festival of street feasts, fireworks and playful hammer tapsFestival
🇪🇸 Jijona, Spain and 5 moreTurrón
A festive Mediterranean nut-and-honey confection shared at Christmas and local feastsTable custom · Sweets given and shared
🇵🇭 Iloilo City, PhilippinesDinagyang FestivalDinágyang
An annual festival of drumming, street dance and devotion to the Santo Niño in Iloilo.Festival
🇨🇱 Santiago, ChileFiestas Patrias
Chile's homeland festivities celebrating national identity with music, dance, and foodCeremony
🇪🇹 Ethiopia and 5 moreNativity Fast
A forty-day Christian period of abstinence and prayer observed in preparation for Christmas.Spiritual
🇷🇴 Romania and 1 moreColindă
A Romanian and Moldovan Christmas carol tradition where village groups sing Nativity songs door to door.Festival
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 6 moreAsh WednesdayDies Cinerum
A solemn Christian holy day of prayer, fasting, and the placing of ashesSpiritual · Fasting and breaking the fast
🇬🇪 GeorgiaAlaverdobaალავერდობა
A harvest and saint's feast celebrated at Alaverdi Cathedral in eastern GeorgiaSpiritual
🇸🇮 Ptuj, Slovenia and 1 moreKurentovanje
A rite of spring and carnival in Ptuj with masked bell-ringers chasing winter awayFestival
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreHarvest festival
A thanks for the gathered crop, kept with church meals, songs and shared foodSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇪🇸 Seville, SpainSeville FairFeria de Abril de Sevilla
A week-long spring festival in Seville of carriage parades, marquee tents and dancingFestival · Dinner
🇧🇪 Aalst, BelgiumAalst CarnivalAalst Carnaval
A three-day street carnival of satire, costumed parades and folk rituals in AalstFestival
🇵🇭 Manila, PhilippinesFlores de Mayo
A month-long Philippine festival of daily Marian prayers, flower offerings and pageantsFestival · Tea-time and snacking customs
🇪🇬 Egypt and 1 moreLentQuadragesima
Forty days of prayer, fasting and giving that lead Christians towards EasterSpiritual · Fasting and breaking the fast
🇱🇹 LithuaniaSaint Jonas's FestivalJoninės
A Lithuanian midsummer night of bonfires, wreaths, song and morning dewSeasonal
🇬🇧 United KingdomPlough Sunday
An English church blessing of the land and farm tools at the start of the yearSpiritual
🇹🇹 Trinidad and TobagoTrinidad and Tobago Carnival
An annual festival of street parades, masquerade bands, steelpan music and danceFestival
🇬🇷 Patras, GreecePatras CarnivalPatrino karnavali
A winter carnival of parades, street games and satirical floats in western GreeceFestival
🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreKoulourakiaΚουλουράκια
Sweet butter pastries baked for Greek Easter and shaped into rings and braidsTable custom · Sweets given and shared
🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago and 3 moreHosay
An Indo-Caribbean Muharram commemoration with ornate floats, drumming and processionsSpiritual · Fasting and breaking the fast
🇵🇱 PolandWigilia
Poland's meatless Christmas Eve supper, begun when the first star appearsTable custom · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreFuneral
The ceremony a community holds when someone dies, from burial to cremationRite of passage
🇮🇳 Mumbai, India and 1 moreDhoti
A long unstitched cloth men wrap like trousers, for worship and formal daysDress
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
- Harvest festival: High Contrast, CC BY 3.0 de, source
- Nativity Fast: User:LoKi, Public domain, source
- Trinidad and Tobago Carnival: Jean-Marc /Jo BeLo/Jhon-John, CC BY 2.0, source
- Antyesti: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Plough Sunday: John Cowie, CC BY 3.0, source
- Jul: Holger.Ellgaard, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Enkutatash: Nati Tad, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Diada de Sant Jordi: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Fetu Afahye: Kofiarkohbaidoo, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Thanksgiving: Lars Plougmann, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Sham Ennessim: Ikonact, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Cremà: Paula Ramírez Morant, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Hosay: Julius Eduard Muller, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Saint Jonas's Festival: Unknown author, CC0, source
- Lent: Manuela Paki-Costa, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Flores de Mayo: Markytour777, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Aalst Carnival: Wikisid, CC BY 3.0, source
- Seville Fair: Sevilla Congress & Convention Bureau, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Alaverdoba: Grigory Gagarin, Public domain, source
- Kurentovanje: Aleš Kravos, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ash Wednesday: Oxh973, Public domain, source
- Colindă: Post of Moldova, Public domain, source
- Fiestas Patrias: Osmar Valdebenito, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Dinagyang Festival: Bernardo 'Berniemack' Arellano III, CC BY 3.0, source
- Turrón: Tamorlan, CC BY 3.0, source
- Festa de São João do Porto: Hugo Cadavez, CC BY 2.0, source
- Vallenato Legend Festival: Jdvillalobos, CC BY 3.0, source
- Olentzero: Josu Goñi Etxabe, Public domain, source
- Christmas in Russia: Gzen92, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Caganer: Roeland P., CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Buhe: Woyne, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Sarafan: Hanna Zelenko, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Columbus Day: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Easter in Poland: Silar, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Holy Week in the Philippines: LMP 2001, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ati-Atihan: Bernardo "Berniemack" Arellano III, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Handfasting: Sander van der Wel, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Koulourakia: foodistablog, CC BY 2.0, source
- Wigilia: Przykuta, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Dhoti: Redaloes at English Wikipedia, Public domain, source
- Feast of San Gennaro: MusikAnimal, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Holy Week in Spain: Rodelar, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Lord of Miracles: Miguel Chong, Public domain, source
- Mummers' play: Aladjov, CC BY 3.0, source
- Gaye holud: Arr4, CC BY-SA 4.0, source