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EveryParampara

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.

About this page

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.

RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
KindSpiritualFestivalRite of passageTable customSeasonalDressPerformanceEtiquetteCraftGameFolkloreHomeCeremony
MealBreakfastLunchDinnerSupperTea-time and snacking customsTea, coffee and drinking ceremoniesSweets given and sharedFeasts and festival mealsFasting and breaking the fast
🇬🇧 Llangollen, United Kingdom and 5 moreEisteddfod A Welsh festival of poetry and music competitions, featuring the chairing and crowning of winning bards.Festival 🇨🇳 ChinaTorch Festival火把节 A summer fire holiday celebrated by Yi and neighbouring communities in southwest ChinaFestival · Feasts and festival meals 🇮🇪 Ireland and 2 moreWren DayLá an Dreoilín A Saint Stephen's Day custom where groups parade a stuffed wren on a decorated pole through their community.Festival 🇯🇵 Japan and 1 moreIomanteイオマンテ An Ainu rite that sends a hand-raised bear cub's spirit home to the god-worldSpiritual 🇲🇼 Malawi and 2 moreGule Wamkulu A masked Chewa dance of the Nyau society, danced at funerals and chief installationsPerformance 🇨🇳 China and 5 moreMoon rabbit月兔 A hare seen in the Moon's dark patches, pounding rice cakes or the elixir of lifeFolklore 🇬🇹 GuatemalaWorry dollMuñecas quitapenas Hand-made dolls from highland Guatemala that children tell their worries to at nightFolklore 🇨🇦 Canada and 2 moreInuksuk Stone markers raised by Inuit across the Arctic to guide, hunt and rememberCraft 🇲🇾 Kelantan, Malaysia and 2 moreMak yongTarian Mak Yong (Jawi: مق يوڠ) A dance-drama of Kelantan and Patani, told in song, music and improvised speechPerformance 🇱🇰 Sri LankaSanni Yakuma A Sinhalese rite where masked dancers summon eighteen illness demons and banish themSpiritual 🇨🇳 China and 5 moreAncestor veneration Honouring dead relatives with offerings, meals and prayers, kept in cultures worldwideSpiritual 🇨🇳 China and 5 moreAncestor worship Honouring dead relatives with offerings and prayers, kept in many cultures worldwideSpiritual 🇬🇹 Santiago Atitlán, Guatemala and 3 moreMaximón A folk saint of the Guatemalan highlands, asked for health, crops and protectionFolklore 🇺🇸 New Orleans, United StatesMardi Gras Indians A New Orleans carnival tradition where Black revelers wear elaborate Native American-inspired suits to honor historical Festival 🇧🇴 La Paz, Bolivia and 1 moreAlasitasFeria de la Alasita A month-long Bolivian fair where people exchange miniatures to invite good fortuneFestival 🇰🇷 Seoul, South KoreaYunnori윷놀이 A Korean board and stick-tossing game played with tokens during the Lunar New YearGame 🇦🇱 Albania and 5 moreDodolaДодoла / Dodola A Balkan rainmaking ritual where children dressed in greenery lead processions to call for summer showers.Festival 🇲🇦 MoroccoBujloodبوجلود A masked carnival of animal skins held in Morocco just after Eid al-AdhaFestival 🇷🇺 Chukaly, RussiaRas'ken' OzksРаськень Озкс A triennial gathering and ancestral prayer ritual of the Erzya people in MordoviaSpiritual 🇬🇭 Winneba, GhanaAboakyer festival A deer hunt kept by the people of Winneba, Ghana, on the first Saturday in MayFestival 🇷🇴 RomaniaCapra A New Year's ritual in Romania where a masked dancer visits homes to bring luck and predict the weather.Festival 🇹🇭 Dan Sai, ThailandPhi Ta Khonผีตาโขน A three-day festival in Dan Sai, north-east Thailand, of ghost masks and merit-makingFestival 🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 4 moreTelling the bees A Western European custom of informing honeybees about major household events like deaths and weddings.Folklore 🇰🇿 Kazakhstan and 1 moreJeti ataЖеті ата A Kazakh custom requiring knowledge of seven direct ancestors to ensure healthy marriages and tribal identity.Folklore 🇨🇺 Cuba and 5 moreLetra del Año Annual prophecies and guidance proclaimed by babalawo priests for the coming yearSpiritual 🇧🇫 Dédougou, Burkina Faso and 5 moreFESTIMAFestival International des Masques et des Arts A biennial West African festival in Burkina Faso celebrating traditional mask dancesFestival 🇪🇸 Spain and 5 moreCabañuelasLas cabañuelas A traditional weather forecasting method using the first thirty-one days of January to predict the rest of the year.Folklore 🇨🇦 Turtle Lake, CanadaTurtle Lake Monster A Saskatchewan lake legend of a huge creature, claimed sightings and a sturgeon theoryFolklore 🇿🇲 Maala, ZambiaShimunenga An annual Zambian celebration of cattle displays, dances, and ancestral memoryFestival · Tea, coffee and drinking ceremonies
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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.