All traditions
2,291 traditions so far, best known first. 12,311 more are on the list to be written. Filter by region, kind and meal.
RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
🇲🇽 Tlayacapan, MexicoChinelos
Masked dancers from Morelos who spoof colonial manners at CarnivalPerformance
🇳🇵 NepalJatjatin Dance
A Mithila folk dance performed by couples to seek rain and express the sorrow of parting.Performance
🇩🇰 Copenhagen, DenmarkNatFilm Festival
An annual Danish cinema gathering held around Easter from 1990 to 2008Performance
🇪🇸 Spain and 1 moreFlabiol
A Catalan woodwind flute played alongside a small drum in folk dancesPerformance
🇵🇸 Palestine and 1 morePalestine Festival of Literatureاحتفالية فلسطين للأدب
An annual touring literary gathering staging free bilingual readings across PalestinePerformance
🇮🇳 India and 1 morePunjabi wedding traditions
The multi-day marriage customs and rituals of Hindu and Sikh Punjabi familiesRite of passage · Sweets given and shared
🇪🇪 Kuressaare, EstoniaSaaremaa Opera FestivalSaaremaa ooperipäevad
An annual opera festival in Kuressaare, Estonia, featuring international performances.Performance
🇯🇵 JapanKirikane截金
A Japanese craft of cut gold, silver or platinum leaf for Buddhist statues and paintingsCraft
🇯🇵 JapanRokudan no Shirabe六段の調
A six-part Japanese koto piece, one of the best known works of the sōkyoku repertoirePerformance
🇪🇪 Tartu, EstoniaTartuff
An open-air romance film festival held in the town hall square of Tartu, EstoniaPerformance
🇺🇿 Bukhara, UzbekistanAsrlar Sadosi
An annual outdoor festival celebrating Uzbek folk arts, sports, crafts, and heritageFestival
🇮🇳 IndiaMarga Natya
A dance, music and acting tradition rebuilt from Bharata's Natya ShastraPerformance
🇲🇰 Bitola, North MacedoniaManaki Brothers Film Festival
An annual international festival in Bitola honouring the craft of cinematographyFestival
🇮🇱 Tel Aviv, Israel and 5 moreTel Aviv International Student Film Festival
A week-long gathering in June where student filmmakers from around the world screen their work, attend workshops, and mePerformance
🇷🇺 Vladimir, RussiaRozhokрожок
A traditional Russian wooden trumpet played solo and in pastoral horn ensemblesPerformance
🇯🇵 JapanNōgaku能楽
A traditional Japanese theater form combining the lyric drama noh and the comic interludes kyōgen.Performance
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreScottish folk music
Traditional ballads, fiddle tunes and bagpipe melodies from Scotland and its diasporaPerformance
🇬🇷 GreeceKalanta ChristougenonΚάλαντα Χριστουγέννων
A Greek Christmas carol, sung around the feast with triangle and guitarPerformance
🇨🇾 Nicosia, Cyprus and 1 moreInternational Festival of Ancient Greek Drama
An annual summer gathering in Cyprus staging classical Greek plays in historic open arenasPerformance
🇮🇱 Safed, IsraelShalom Aleichemשָׁלוֹם עֲלֵיכֶם
A traditional song sung on Friday night to welcome Sabbath angels into the homeSpiritual
🇽🇰 Gjilan, KosovoFlaka e Janarit
A winter arts festival in Kosovo honoring national martyrs through music, drama and verseFestival
🇰🇳 Charlestown, Saint Kitts and NevisCulturama
An annual summer carnival celebrating Nevisian heritage and returning islandersFestival
🇲🇹 Floriana, MaltaIsle of MTV
A major free summer open-air pop and electronic music gathering held in MaltaFestival
🇿🇲 Muyombe, ZambiaVinkhakanimba
An annual gathering and dance celebration of the Tumbuka people in northeastern ZambiaFestival
🇲🇼 Bolero, MalawiGonapamhanya festival
An annual gathering of the Tumbuka people honouring their first paramount chiefFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇱🇻 Riga, LatviaRiga International Short Film Festival 2ANNASRīgas Starptautiskais īsfilmu festivāls 2ANNAS
An annual autumn film competition and screening event held in Riga, LatviaPerformance
🇿🇲 Lundazi, ZambiaZengani
An annual October gathering of Tumbuka and Ngoni communities in eastern Zambia to celebrate unity through traditional daFestival
🇱🇧 Byblos, LebanonByblos International Festival
An annual summer music and arts festival held in the historic port town of Byblos, Lebanon.Festival
🇱🇧 Beirut, LebanonBeirut International Women Film Festival
An annual cinema festival in Beirut celebrating films made by and about womenPerformance
🇽🇰 Prizren, KosovoAutostrada Biennale
A biennial contemporary art festival and cultural exhibition in Prizren, KosovoPerformance
🇳🇱 Netherlands and 6 moreManifesta
A roving European contemporary art festival held in a new host city every two yearsPerformance
🇧🇼 D'Kar, BotswanaKuru Dance and Music Festival
A gathering of San communities in Botswana to share songs, stories and sacred dancesPerformance
🇲🇹 Valletta, MaltaL-Għanja tal-Poplu
An annual Maltese music festival celebrating original songs in MaltesePerformance
🇨🇻 Cape Verde and 1 moreKola San Jon
A Cabo Verdean street festival of dance, drumming, and devotion to Saint JohnFestival
🇸🇷 Suriname and 1 moreSuriPop
A biennial songwriting festival and gala performance held in SurinamePerformance
🇬🇷 GreeceLipothymiarikosΛιποθυμιάρικος (Χορός της νύφης)
A men-only Greek wedding dance where one dancer pretends to faint and springs upPerformance
🇲🇪 Herceg Novi, MontenegroSunčane Skale
A three-day summer pop music festival and song competition in MontenegroPerformance
🇨🇲 Bangangté, CameroonMedumba Arts and Culture FestivalFestival des arts et de la culture medumba
A two-week biennial festival in Cameroon celebrating Medumba heritage and language.Festival
🇵🇭 PhilippinesBinirayan Festival
An annual December cultural festival in Antique celebrating Panay's Malay settlementFestival
🇳🇴 NorwayMárkomeannu
A Sámi music and cultural festival held in northern NorwayFestival
🇯🇵 Kyoto, JapanJiuta地歌
A shamisen song style born in Kamigata and long kept by blind musician guildsPerformance
🇧🇫 Dédougou, Burkina Faso and 5 moreFESTIMAFestival International des Masques et des Arts
A biennial West African festival in Burkina Faso celebrating traditional mask dancesFestival
🇹🇳 Sousse, TunisiaCarnival of Awussu
An annual seaside midsummer parade in Sousse with floats, brass bands and folk troupesFestival
🇺🇿 Namangan, UzbekistanFlower Festival in UzbekistanGul bayrami
An annual spring celebration of floriculture and floral art held across several cities in Uzbekistan.Festival
🇱🇺 LuxembourgCinEast
An October film festival in Luxembourg showing new cinema from Central and Eastern EuropeFestival
🇱🇻 Riga, LatviaRiga Salsa Festival
An annual salsa dance festival in Riga, Latvia, featuring workshops and live performances.Performance
🇸🇬 Singapore, SingaporeSingapore International Festival of Arts
A month of theatre, dance, music and visual art in Singapore each mid-yearPerformance
🇻🇪 El Callao, VenezuelaCalypso de El Callao
Calypso sung at carnival in El Callao, Venezuela, with yearly king and queen contestsFestival
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Chinelos: AlejandroLinaresGarcia, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Singapore International Festival of Arts: Waycool27 at English Wikipedia, Public domain, source
- Carnival of Awussu: Mahdi azouzi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- FESTIMA: Nomwindé, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Jiuta: Jean-Pierre Dalbéra, CC BY 2.0, source
- Márkomeannu: Chmee2, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Binirayan Festival: Ranieljosecastaneda, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kola San Jon: Dvfernandes, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Manifesta: Manifesta8 manifesta 8, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kuru Dance and Music Festival: SanDanceVR, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Autostrada Biennale: Lajmmoore, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Gonapamhanya festival: Tumbuka Arch, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Isle of MTV: Continentaleurope, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Flaka e Janarit: E Sadiku, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kirikane: 内閣府, CC BY 4.0, source
- Flabiol: P0mbal, CC0, source
- Jatjatin Dance: Ramesh Lalwani, CC BY 2.0, source
- Punjabi wedding traditions: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Saaremaa Opera Festival: Ave Maria Mõistlik, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tartuff: Tusklikupreili, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Asrlar Sadosi: Patisserie, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Marga Natya: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Manaki Brothers Film Festival: US Embassy, Macedonia, Public domain, source
- Tel Aviv International Student Film Festival: Adam4896, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Rozhok: Obakeneko, CC BY 3.0, source
- Nōgaku: Daderot, CC0, source
- Scottish folk music: Kim Traynor, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Medumba Arts and Culture Festival: Djenrode, CC BY-SA 4.0, source