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
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 4 moreMummers' play
A comic folk drama of staged combat, death, and revival by an eccentric doctorPerformance
🇪🇸 Barcelona, Spain and 2 moreDiada de Sant Jordi
A Catalan feast day of literature and love, marked by giving books and red rosesFestival
🇲🇰 Galičnik, North MacedoniaGaličnik Wedding FestivalГаличка свадба
An annual village wedding festival celebrated every July in North MacedoniaFestival
🇨🇭 Vevey, SwitzerlandFête des Vignerons
A once-in-a-generation wine festival and arena spectacle in Vevey, SwitzerlandFestival · Tea, coffee and drinking ceremonies
🇪🇸 Valencia, SpainCremà
The ceremonial burning of large artistic street monuments across the Valencian communityFestival
🇬🇧 Abbots Bromley, United KingdomAbbots Bromley Horn Dance
A September folk dance in an English village featuring dancers with reindeer antlers and a hobby horse.Performance
🇬🇷 Patras, GreecePatras CarnivalPatrino karnavali
A winter carnival of parades, street games and satirical floats in western GreeceFestival
🇭🇺 Budapest, Hungary and 3 moreTáncház
A Hungarian folk dance gathering where anyone can learn the steps and dance to live musicPerformance
🇷🇺 Russia and 1 moreTuvan throat singing
A style of singing from Tuva where one voice sounds a drone and a melody at oncePerformance
🇮🇸 Vestmannaeyjar, IcelandÞjóðhátíð
An annual outdoor island festival of concerts, bonfires and hillside singing in IcelandFestival
🇫🇮 Helsinki, FinlandKalevala DayKalevalan päivä
A Finnish national flag day celebrating the country's epic poetry and living artsCeremony
🇪🇸 Seville, SpainFlamenco
The song, guitar and dance of Andalusia, kept by gitano and other Spanish families.Performance
🇱🇻 Riga, Latvia and 4 moreLatvian Song and Dance FestivalVispārējie latviešu Dziesmu un Deju svētki
A grand gathering of choirs, dancers and folk artists held every five years in LatviaPerformance
🇧🇪 Aalst, BelgiumAalst CarnivalAalst Carnaval
A three-day street carnival of satire, costumed parades and folk rituals in AalstFestival
🇪🇸 Seville, SpainSeville FairFeria de Abril de Sevilla
A week-long spring festival in Seville of carriage parades, marquee tents and dancingFestival · Dinner
🇷🇺 Russia and 1 moreLezginkaЛезгинка (Russian) · Лезги кьуьл (Lezgian)
A fast dance of the North Caucasus, solo or in pairs, named for the Lezgin peoplePerformance
🇷🇴 Romania and 1 moreColindă
A Romanian and Moldovan Christmas carol tradition where village groups sing Nativity songs door to door.Festival
🇱🇹 Vilnius, LithuaniaLithuanian Song FestivalLietuvių dainų ir šokių šventė
A periodic national festival of choral singing, dance and folklore in LithuaniaFestival
🇺🇦 Kyiv, UkraineVertepвертеп
A two-tiered Ukrainian puppet theatre that mixes the nativity story with satirical comedy and folk music.Performance
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreCarol service
A Christmas church service of seasonal hymns, scripture readings and candlelightSpiritual
🇭🇷 Konavle, Croatia and 2 moreOjkanje
A throat-shaking style of folk singing from Croatia's Dinaric highlandsPerformance
🇬🇧 London, United Kingdom and 6 moreBoishakhi Melaবৈশাখী মেলা
A Bengali New Year fair in London each May, with a parade, music and food stallsFestival
🇩🇪 Munich, Germany and 3 moreSchuhplattler
An Alpine folk dance of stomps, claps and flat-hand slaps on shoes, knees and thighsPerformance
🇷🇴 Bucharest, Romania and 7 moreHorahoră (Romanian), хоро (Bulgarian), оро (Macedonian), הורה (Hebrew)
A circle dance from Southeast Europe, danced at weddings and festivalsPerformance
🇮🇪 Dublin, Ireland and 3 moreIrish dance
Ireland's traditional solo and group dances, from social halls to world competitionsPerformance
🇮🇹 ItalyCantu a tenorecantu a tenòre
Four men singing in a tight circle, a vocal art of Sardinia's Barbagia hillsPerformance
🇷🇴 RomaniaDoina
A free-rhythm Romanian song of longing, sung alone or played to open a dancePerformance
🇬🇧 United KingdomLong sword dance
A Yorkshire winter sword dance kept by village teams at Christmas and Plough MondayPerformance
🇨🇭 Appenzell, Switzerland and 5 moreYodeling
A singing style switching between chest voice and falsetto, kept as a folk tradition across the Alps and globally.Performance
🇷🇸 Serbia and 3 moreKoloКоло
A South Slavic circle dance of linked hands, kept at weddings and gatheringsPerformance
🇪🇸 SpainCorrefoc
Devil-costumed fire runs through the streets of Catalan and Valencian festival townsFestival
🇦🇱 Gjirokastër, Albania and 2 moreAlbanian iso-polyphonyIso-polifonia
Multi-part Albanian singing with a held drone, kept across the southPerformance
🇮🇪 Ireland and 1 moreKeeningCaoineadh
A sung mourning cry at Gaelic funerals, once led by hired women singersRite of passage
🇷🇺 Palekh, RussiaPalekh miniatureПалехская миниатюра
Tiny tempera paintings on lacquered papier-mâché, made in the Russian town of PalekhCraft
🇦🇹 Vienna, AustriaViennese coffee house cultureWiener Kaffeehauskultur
A Viennese social ritual where patrons linger for hours with a single coffee and newspapers.Etiquette · Tea-time and snacking customs
🇦🇹 Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Austria and 2 moreSilent NightStille Nacht, heilige Nacht
A Christmas carol composed in Austria in 1818, now sung worldwide as a symbol of peace.Performance
🇵🇹 Lisbon, PortugalFado
Portugal's song of fate and longing, sung in Lisbon and CoimbraPerformance
🇪🇪 EstoniaSeto leeloleelo
Polyphonic folk singing of the Setos, led by women in traditional dressPerformance
🇺🇦 UkraineTraditional Ukrainian wedding
A wedding spread over many days, with matchmaking, bread, wreaths and songRite of passage
🇬🇧 Llangollen, United Kingdom and 5 moreEisteddfod
A Welsh festival of poetry and music competitions, featuring the chairing and crowning of winning bards.Festival
🇬🇧 Cardiff, United KingdomGorsedd CymruGorsedd Cymru (yr Orsedd)
A Welsh society of poets and writers that holds ceremonies at the National Eisteddfod to honour cultural achievements.Festival
🇧🇾 BelarusBatlejkaБатле́йка
A two-level puppet booth from Belarus, playing Nativity and folk scenes at ChristmasPerformance
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreLast Post
A bugle call sounded at military funerals and remembrance services across the Commonwealth to honour those who died in sPerformance
🇪🇸 Spain and 5 moreMoors and ChristiansMoros y Cristianos
Theatrical parades and mock battles staging historic clashes across Spain and beyondFestival
🇪🇸 Valencia, SpainMascletà
A daytime sound and rhythm pyrotechnic display typical of the Valencian CommunityFestival
🇧🇬 Kazanlak, BulgariaRose FestivalФестивал на розата
An annual harvest celebration of damask roses across the Rose Valley of BulgariaFestival
🇭🇷 Dubrovnik, CroatiaDubrovnik Summer FestivalDubrovačke ljetne igre
An annual summer celebration of theatre, music and dance held in the historic streets of Dubrovnik.Festival
🇫🇷 Nice, FranceNice CarnivalCarnaval de Nice
A two-week winter festival of papier-mâché floats and flower battles in Nice, FranceFestival
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Patras Carnival: www.infocenterpatras.gr, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tuvan throat singing: Johanna Kovitz, Public domain, source
- Diada de Sant Jordi: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Cremà: Paula Ramírez Morant, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Þjóðhátíð: Drumstick21, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kalevala Day: Vladimir Menkov, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Flamenco: John Singer Sargent, Public domain, source
- Latvian Song and Dance Festival: Laima Gūtmane (simka), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Aalst Carnival: Wikisid, CC BY 3.0, source
- Seville Fair: Sevilla Congress & Convention Bureau, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Lezginka: Vasily Vereshchagin, Public domain, source
- Colindă: Post of Moldova, Public domain, source
- Lithuanian Song Festival: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Vertep: Микола Василечко, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Abbots Bromley Horn Dance: Caeciliusinhorto, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Boishakhi Mela: Ripon Miah, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Schuhplattler: Harald Bischoff, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Hora: Chajeshukarie ( talk ), Public domain, source
- Irish dance: U.S. Army, Public domain, source
- Cantu a tenore: Sardegnabella, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Long sword dance: donald judge, CC BY 2.0, source
- Yodeling: Paebi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kolo: Sasa.mazinjanin, Public domain, source
- Correfoc: Calvesklein, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Keening: W.H. Brooke, Public domain, source
- Palekh miniature: Ivan Ivanovich Golikov, Public domain, source
- Viennese coffee house culture: Photo: Andreas Praefcke, CC BY 3.0, source
- Silent Night: Franz Xaver Gruber (1787–1863), Public domain, source
- Fado: Pedro Simões, CC BY 2.0, source
- Seto leelo: Ave Maria Mõistlik, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Traditional Ukrainian wedding: Пимоненко, Николай Корнильевич, Public domain, source
- Eisteddfod: Llywelyn2000, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Gorsedd Cymru: Els Pam Pels, CC0, source
- Batlejka: user:Хомелка, CC BY 3.0, source
- Last Post: User:EnEdC, Public domain, source
- Fête des Vignerons: "Groupement des photographes officiels" / Fête des vignerons Vevey / S, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Galičnik Wedding Festival: IvanaKrstik, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Mummers' play: Aladjov, CC BY 3.0, source
- Moors and Christians: No machine-readable author provided. Jarke assumed (based on copyright, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Mascletà: Pablo Enzo, Public domain, source
- Rose Festival: Animsaj, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Dubrovnik Summer Festival: Roberta F., CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Nice Carnival: Honeydew, CC BY-SA 3.0, source