Indigenous and traditional traditions
Indigenous and traditional spiritual and cultural practices belong to peoples who have lived on their lands for many generations: the First Nations and Native peoples of the Americas, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples of Australia, the Maori and Pacific Islanders, the Sami, the many peoples of Africa and the hill peoples of Asia.
Indigenous and traditional spiritual and cultural practices belong to peoples who have lived on their lands for many generations: the First Nations and Native peoples of the Americas, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples of Australia, the Maori and Pacific Islanders, the Sami, the many peoples of Africa and the hill peoples of Asia. Their traditions include ceremonies of the land, naming and initiation, healing, story and dance. Some are public and others private. EveryParampara describes only what communities share openly, and credits them as the source.
Land, ancestors and story
For many Indigenous peoples, land is kin, not property, and ceremonies thank the earth, the water and the animals. Ancestors are present, and stories of creation, such as the Dreaming, tell people how to live. Knowledge is passed by elders in language, song and dance. Many of these languages are under threat, and communities are leading efforts to teach them to the young.
Sharing with care
Some ceremonies are open to visitors, such as powwows and the Maori powhiri, and others, such as initiations, are restricted. Visitors are asked to listen, follow instructions, ask before taking photographs and avoid treating sacred things as entertainment. Many nations have protocols on the use of images and symbols. EveryParampara follows these requests and links to community voices and organisations wherever possible.
Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Background on Indigenous and traditional (faith). Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
🇲🇽 Mexico City, Mexico and 2 moreDay of the DeadDía de Muertos
A Mexican remembrance of deceased family and friends with altars, marigolds and feastsFestival · Sweets given and shared
🇺🇸 United StatesNalukataq
A spring whaling festival of the Iñupiat in Northern Alaska, featuring a blanket toss and communal feast.Festival · Feasts and festival meals
🇳🇬 Ibadan, Nigeria and 1 moreYoruba naming ceremonyÌkòlọ́pọ̀ Orúkọ Yorùbá
A rite of passage where a newborn receives a destiny name through divination and family celebration.Rite of passage · Feasts and festival meals
🇧🇹 Bhutan and 4 moreLosarལོ་གསར་
The Tibetan Buddhist New Year festival of renewal, offerings, and family feastsSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇲🇳 Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia and 1 moreNaadamнаадам
A midsummer festival of wrestling, horse racing, and archery kept by Mongols in Mongolia and neighboring regions.Festival · Feasts and festival meals
🇨🇦 Canada and 1 morePotlatch
A ceremonial feast of gift-giving and wealth distribution among First Nations on the Northwest Coast.Festival · Feasts and festival meals
🇲🇳 Mongolia and 2 moreTsagaan SarЦагаан сар
The Mongolian Lunar New Year festival of peace, elders, white foods and renewalSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇬🇭 Accra, GhanaHomowo
A harvest festival of the Ga people in Ghana to remember surviving famineFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreSohrai
A harvest and cattle observance kept by indigenous communities in eastern IndiaSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇳 Sambalpur, IndiaNuakhai
An agricultural festival in Western Odisha welcoming the first rice of the seasonSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇳 Guwahati, IndiaBohag Bihu
A multi-day Assamese New Year festival of cattle rites, music, gifts and feastsSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇬🇭 Cape Coast, GhanaFetu Afahye
A harvest festival of cleansing, boat races and royal durbars in Cape Coast, GhanaFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇬🇭 Akropong, GhanaOdwira Festival
An annual harvest and purification festival celebrated by the Akuapem in GhanaFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇳🇬 NigeriaIgbo New Yam FestivalIri ji
A harvest thanksgiving and feast marking the first yam crop among the Igbo of NigeriaSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreWangala
A post-harvest thanksgiving festival of drums, dance and song among the Garo peopleFestival · Tea, coffee and drinking ceremonies
🇮🇳 IndiaMagh Bihu
A harvest festival of bonfires, feasts and winter games in AssamSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇳🇬 Oyo, Nigeria and 3 moreSango Festival
An annual Yoruba gathering in Nigeria honoring the deity of thunder and lightningFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇺🇸 United StatesMakahiki
A four-month Hawaiian new year season of peace, harvest gifts, feasts and gamesSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇭🇹 Port-au-Prince, HaitiHaitian CarnivalKanaval
Haiti's annual street festival of music, satirical plays and costumed paradesFestival · Tea-time and snacking customs
🇨🇳 ChinaTorch Festival火把节
A summer fire holiday celebrated by Yi and neighbouring communities in southwest ChinaFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇰🇷 South Korea and 1 moreChuseok추석
A Korean harvest festival of ancestral rites, seasonal rice cakes, and folk gamesFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇳 IndiaSarhul
A spring new year festival honoring nature and Sal blossoms across JharkhandSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇺🇸 United StatesLūʻau
A Hawaiian feast of kālua pig and poi, eaten by hand outdoors with music and hulaTable custom · Feasts and festival meals
🇳🇬 Abuja, NigeriaNew Yam FestivalIri ji
A yearly harvest thanksgiving across Nigeria, when the first new yams may be eatenFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇬🇭 GhanaOutdooringkpojiemɔ (Ga), abadinto (Akan), vihehedego (Ewe)
A Ghanaian ceremony eight days after birth, when a baby is brought outdoors and namedRite of passage · Feasts and festival meals
🇳🇬 Kagoro, NigeriaAfan FestivalBwok Ǎfan
A New Year's Day festival of hunting and dances among the Oegworok peopleFestival · Tea, coffee and drinking ceremonies
🇲🇼 Bolero, MalawiGonapamhanya festival
An annual gathering of the Tumbuka people honouring their first paramount chiefFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇩🇿 AlgeriaWezeeaوزيعة
A communal meat-sharing custom fostering rural solidarity across AlgeriaSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Losar: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tsagaan Sar: User:Chinneeb, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Fetu Afahye: Kofiarkohbaidoo, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Odwira Festival: Duncanoff, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Haitian Carnival: User:Doron, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Torch Festival: Zhangmoon618, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Chuseok: by Joseph Steinberg (Baltimoron in Korea) at Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Bohag Bihu: Diganta Talukdar, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Nuakhai: Mamata Padhi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Magh Bihu: Diganta Talukdar, CC BY 2.0, source
- Sarhul: Gurpreet Singh Ranchi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Nalukataq: Floyd Davidson, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Lūʻau: Ralawami, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- New Yam Festival: Adimora chidinma, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Homowo: Agbleyjill, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Sango Festival: Demola Ajayi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Gonapamhanya festival: Tumbuka Arch, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Potlatch: James Gilchrist Swan (1818–1900), Public domain, source
- Naadam: Chongkian, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Day of the Dead: RubeHM, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Makahiki: Unknown author, Public domain, source