Traditions of Europe
Carnival, Midsummer, Christmas markets, Easter, the village fête and the long Sunday lunch. 712 traditions on EveryParampara so far.
Countries
🇦🇱 Albania 26🇦🇩 Andorra 4🇦🇹 Austria 49🇧🇾 Belarus 30🇧🇪 Belgium 40🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina 13🇧🇬 Bulgaria 47🇭🇷 Croatia 31🇨🇿 Czechia 18🇩🇰 Denmark 25🇪🇪 Estonia 17🇫🇮 Finland 34🇫🇷 France 91🇩🇪 Germany 113🇬🇷 Greece 68🇭🇺 Hungary 21🇮🇸 Iceland 20🇮🇪 Ireland 75🇮🇹 Italy 113🇽🇰 Kosovo 17🇱🇻 Latvia 17🇱🇮 Liechtenstein 2🇱🇹 Lithuania 22🇱🇺 Luxembourg 14🇲🇹 Malta 15🇲🇩 Moldova 11🇲🇨 Monaco 1🇲🇪 Montenegro 11🇳🇱 Netherlands 28🇲🇰 North Macedonia 23🇳🇴 Norway 37🇵🇱 Poland 70🇵🇹 Portugal 25🇷🇴 Romania 38🇷🇺 Russia 100🇸🇲 San Marino 1🇷🇸 Serbia 42🇸🇰 Slovakia 16🇸🇮 Slovenia 24🇪🇸 Spain 96🇸🇪 Sweden 45🇨🇭 Switzerland 33🇺🇦 Ukraine 44🇬🇧 United Kingdom 200🇻🇦 Vatican City 3
Cities and towns
Rome 30London 26Moscow 18Dublin 17Vienna 16Athens 14Venice 14Paris 13Seville 12Kraków 11Riga 11Valencia 11
On the calendar
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreChristmas dinner
The festive family meal of Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, with roast meats and puddingsTable custom · Dinner
🇳🇴 NorwayJul
An eight-week Norwegian midwinter season of feasts, family gatherings, and gift-givingSeasonal · Lunch
🇮🇹 Rome, ItalySaturnalia
A December festival of ancient Rome, with feasting, gifts, gambling and role reversalSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇬🇷 GreeceSymposiumσυμπόσιον
An ancient Greek post-meal gathering for diluted wine, debate, music and lively gamesTable custom · Tea, coffee and drinking ceremonies
🇮🇹 Rome, ItalyBacchanalia
An ancient Roman mystery festival dedicated to the god of wine and ecstasyFestival · Tea, coffee and drinking ceremonies
🇷🇺 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 4 moreTwelve Days of Christmas
A festive Christian liturgical season linking Christmas Day to the eve of EpiphanySeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇩🇰 Denmark and 1 moreQuinquagesima
The last Sunday before Lent in Western Christianity, marking the start of Carnival and Shrovetide.Festival · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇹 Rome, Italy and 7 moreSaint Joseph's Day
A 19 March feast honouring Jesus' earthly father, kept with altars and processionsSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇹 Rome, ItalyMegalesiaMegalenses Ludi
An ancient Roman spring festival of theatrical plays, races and feasts for CybeleFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇹 Italy and 4 moreRosalia
An ancient Roman festival of decorating graves, statues, and standards with fresh flowersSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇵🇱 Zakopane, PolandKulig
A traditional Polish winter sleigh ride party celebrated during the Carnival seasonFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇩🇪 Germany and 5 moreSaint Sylvester's Day
A Christian feast day and year-end celebration marked across Europe and beyondSeasonal · Dinner
🇬🇷 Athens, GreeceAmphidromiaτὰ Ἀμφιδρόμια
An ancient Athenian family ritual welcoming a newborn around the household hearthRite of passage · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇹 Rome, ItalyVolturnalia
An ancient Roman festival honouring the water deity Volturnus and his daughter JuturnaSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇬🇷 Amyclae, GreeceHyacinthiaὙακίνθια
A three-day ancient Spartan festival marking the death and rebirth of HyacinthusFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇱🇻 Riga, Latvia and 4 moreMeteņi
A Latvian pre-Lenten festival marking the turn of time and welcoming spring.Festival · Feasts and festival meals
🇬🇷 Orchomenus, GreeceAgrionia
An ancient Greek nocturnal festival dedicated to Dionysus AgrioniusSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇬🇷 Athens, GreeceDionysiaΔιονύσια
Ancient Athenian festivals of theatre, processions and sacrifices in honour of the god Dionysus.Festival · Feasts and festival meals
🇷🇸 Serbia and 2 moreZapisзапис
A consecrated village tree marked with a cross, venerated in Serbian folk traditionSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇷🇸 Serbia and 5 moreĐurđevdanЂурђевдан
A spring festival and feast of Saint George kept across the Balkans and Eastern EuropeFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇭🇺 Miskolc, HungaryKocsonya FestivalKocsonyafesztivál
An annual winter food and culture festival held in Miskolc, HungaryFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇬🇧 Worldham, United Kingdom and 5 moreJalsa Salanaجلسہ سالانہ
A three-day annual assembly for the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, featuring lectures, prayers and communal meals.Festival · Feasts and festival meals
🇬🇧 Penzance, United KingdomGuldizeGool dheys
A Cornish harvest supper after the last sheaf is cut, with pork, pie, singing and gamesSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇵🇹 PortugalMissas do Parto
Nine morning Masses in Madeira that follow Mary through the last days of her pregnancySpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇸 IcelandChristmas in IcelandJól
A winter festival of mountain folklore, family feasts and thirteen mischievous visitorsFestival · Dinner
🇸🇪 Sweden and 2 moreSaint Knut's DayTjugondag Knut
A Nordic holiday marking the twentieth and final day of Christmas each JanuarySeasonal · Sweets given and shared
🇮🇹 ItalyDies lustricus
An ancient Roman naming ceremony where a newborn was purified and given their first name.Rite of passage · Feasts and festival meals
🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreTsiknopemptiΤσικνοπέμπτη
A Greek Carnival feast of grilled meats held on the second to last Thursday before Lent.Festival · Dinner
🇪🇸 Madrid, Spain and 4 moreFeast of Saint Isidore the LaborerFiestas de San Isidro Labrador
A May festival honoring the patron saint of farmers, marked by processions and harvest gratitude in Spain and former colFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇩🇪 Munich, GermanyO'zapft is!
The civic barrel-tapping ceremony that officially launches Munich's OktoberfestCeremony · Tea, coffee and drinking ceremonies
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Jalsa Salana: Ceddyfresse, Public domain, source
- Đurđevdan: Anonymous Russian icon painter (before 1917) Public domain image (acco, Public domain, source
- Saturnalia: Themadchopper, Antoine-François Callet, CC0, source
- Radonitsa: Perohanych, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Christmas dinner: Austin McGee, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Saint Joseph's Day: Guido Reni, Public domain, source
- Meteņi: Spekozols, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Christmas in Iceland: Bryan Ledgard, CC BY 2.0, source
- Kocsonya Festival: Szalax, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Bacchanalia: Nicolas Poussin, Public domain, source
- Symposium: Nikias Painter, CC BY 2.5, source
- Missas do Parto: Porto Bay Events, CC BY 2.0, source
- Twelve Days of Christmas: Giotto, Public domain, source
- Quinquagesima: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Rosalia: Lawrence Alma-Tadema, Public domain, source
- Kulig: various, Public domain, source
- Saint Sylvester's Day: Unknown medieval artist in Rome, Public domain, source
- Dionysia: Unknown artist, Public domain, source
- Feast of Saint Isidore the Laborer: Ángel Lizcano Monedero, Public domain, source
- O'zapft is!: Michael Lucan, CC BY-SA 3.0 de, source
- Zapis: Zblagojevic, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Tsiknopempti: C messier, CC BY-SA 4.0, source