Secular and civic traditions
Secular and civic traditions are those kept without a religious frame: national days, parades, remembrance days, birthdays, graduations, school and university rituals, sporting customs, workplace habits and the rites of clubs and communities.
Secular and civic traditions are those kept without a religious frame: national days, parades, remembrance days, birthdays, graduations, school and university rituals, sporting customs, workplace habits and the rites of clubs and communities. They give people shared moments and symbols outside any faith, and many have grown over a century or two. EveryParampara includes them alongside older traditions, because a Fourth of July barbecue or a Burns Night supper is as much a tradition as any ancient rite, and is kept with equal feeling.
Nations and communities
National days, flags, anthems, parades and minutes of silence create a sense of belonging. Remembrance of war dead, in poppies, wreaths and the Last Post, is observed by millions. Local clubs, guilds and societies keep their own rituals, from the mayor's procession to the Rotary meeting. Each reflects the history and the values of the group, and many invite the public to attend.
Milestones without a church
Birthdays, graduations, retirements, housewarmings and baby showers are secular milestones, kept with cakes, speeches and gifts. Many couples hold civil weddings and non-religious naming ceremonies and funerals led by celebrants. These customs show how people create meaning and mark time together, and how traditions are made as well as inherited. Some of them are only a few decades old, and already feel like old friends. A tradition begins the first time a group of people decides to do something again next year.
Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Background on Secular and civic (faith). Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 4 morePub quiz
A weekly social trivia game played by teams at tables in pubs and barsGame
🇨🇭 Aproz, Switzerland and 2 moreCombat de Reines
An annual Swiss pushing contest where Hérens cows compete for herd dominanceGame
🇨🇱 Rancagua, Chile and 1 moreChilean rodeo
A Chilean equestrian sport and weekend festival contested in a crescent-shaped arenaGame
🇺🇸 Los Angeles, United StatesSuper Bowl
The annual championship game of American professional football, held every February.Game
🇬🇷 Olympia, Greece and 1 moreOlympic torch relay
The ceremonial journey of the flame from Olympia to each host city of the Olympic GamesCeremony
🇯🇵 Japan and 2 moreKyūdō弓道
The Japanese martial art of archery, practiced with an asymmetrical longbowGame
🇵🇭 Cebu, PhilippinesArnis
The national martial art of the Philippines using sticks, bladed weapons and open handsGame
🇲🇽 Mexico and 1 moreCharro traditionCharro
The equestrian skills, formal attire and rodeo arts of the Mexican horseman.Game
🇨🇳 China and 2 moreCuju蹴鞠
An ancient Chinese kicking game played without hands using a stuffed or air-filled ballGame
🇦🇺 Sydney, Australia and 5 moreSurf lifesaving
A volunteer beach rescue and ocean sports tradition originating on Australian coasts.Game
🇯🇵 Kyoto, JapanKendo剣道
A Japanese martial art of swordsmanship using bamboo swords and protective armourGame
🇨🇦 Calgary, CanadaCalgary StampedeStampede de Calgary
A ten-day July festival of rodeo, racing, and community breakfasts in Alberta.Festival · Breakfast
🇲🇽 Acolman, Mexico and 1 morePiñata
A festive decorated container broken open with a stick to scatter treats and fruitFestival
🇺🇸 Tahlequah, United StatesCherokee National Holiday
An annual gathering in Oklahoma marking the signing of the Cherokee ConstitutionFestival
🇬🇷 Patras, GreecePatras CarnivalPatrino karnavali
A winter carnival of parades, street games and satirical floats in western GreeceFestival
🇨🇦 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
🇰🇵 Pyongyang, North Korea and 4 moreMass games
Disciplined, large-scale gymnastic spectacles celebrating unity and national prideCeremony
🇮🇹 Florence, ItalyCalcio storico fiorentino
A fierce Renaissance ball game played on sand between four Florentine districtsGame
🇺🇿 Uzbekistan and 5 moreKurashкөрәш
Central Asian traditional upright folk wrestling using cloth belts or towelsGame
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreShoe throwing
The act of hurling footwear for sport, wedding luck, protest or overhead display.Folklore
🇯🇵 Japan and 5 moreHouse
A traditional children's make-believe game of acting out domestic family rolesGame
🇷🇺 Moscow, RussiaSpartakiad of the Peoples of the USSRСпартакиада народов СССР
A massive multi-sport festival that brought together Soviet republics every four yearsGame
🇦🇪 Sharjah, United Arab EmiratesSir Bu Nair Festival
An annual maritime gathering celebrating seafaring and island conservation in SharjahFestival
🇨🇦 Edmonton, CanadaGrand North American Old Time Fiddle Championship
An annual summer fiddle tournament and community gathering in Alberta, CanadaPerformance
🇯🇵 JapanKamifūsen紙風船
Japanese paper balloons enjoyed as self-inflating toys, gifts and festival lanternsGame
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Kamifūsen: アルトクール, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Combat de Reines: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Calgary Stampede: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kurash: IlshatS, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Olympic torch relay: DieselCat, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Calcio storico fiorentino: Stradanus / After Giorgio Vasari, Public domain, source
- Mass games: photo: unknown file: James Steakley, Public domain, source
- Quebec Winter Carnival: Shapiros10, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Patras Carnival: www.infocenterpatras.gr, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Piñata: No machine-readable author provided. JEDIKNIGHT1970 assumed (based on, Public domain, source
- Pub quiz: JIP, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kendo: Source: photo taken by Harald Hofer, CC BY-SA 2.0 at, source
- Surf lifesaving: User:Celcom, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Cuju: BabelStone, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Charro tradition: AlejandroLinaresGarcia, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Arnis: Carmen Novoa, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kyūdō: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Super Bowl: John Tornow, CC BY 2.0, source
- Chilean rodeo: Marco Antonio Correa Flores, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Shoe throwing: Zarateman, CC0, source
- House: Alborzagros, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Spartakiad of the Peoples of the USSR: Scanning Dmitry Makeev , scan date - 2020 year., Public domain, source