All traditions
2,291 traditions so far, best known first. 12,316 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
🇵🇭 Philippines and 1 morePangalay
A traditional fingernail dance of the Tausūg and Bajau peoples in the Sulu Archipelago and Sabah.Performance
🇵🇭 Palo, Philippines and 1 moreTinikling
A Philippine folk dance where dancers step between clapping bamboo polesPerformance
🇵🇭 Manila, PhilippinesPasyon
A Tagalog epic of Christ's passion, chanted without a break during Holy WeekSpiritual
🇮🇩 IndonesiaOgoh-ogohᬳᭀᬕᭀᬄᬳᭀᬕᭀᬄ
Giant handcrafted statues paraded and burned on the eve of the Balinese Saka New YearFestival
🇵🇭 PhilippinesPandanggo
A lively Philippine folk dance of quick steps, clapping and balanced lightsPerformance
🇮🇩 Ubud, IndonesiaBarongᬩᬭᭀᬂ
A sacred Balinese masked dance drama depicting the eternal struggle of good and evilPerformance
🇻🇳 Hoa Lư, VietnamChèo嘲
Satirical folk musical theatre performed by village troupes across northern VietnamPerformance
🇸🇬 Singapore, SingaporeNational Day Parade
Singapore's annual independence day celebration of parades, music and fireworksCeremony
🇰🇭 CambodiaApsara Danceរបាំទេពអប្សរា
A classical Cambodian court dance inspired by the stone carvings of AngkorPerformance
🇻🇳 Huế, VietnamNón lá𥶄蘿
A pointed leaf and bamboo hat worn across Vietnam for shelter, work and celebrationDress
🇲🇲 MyanmarYoke théရုပ်သေး
A classical Burmese string puppet theatre performed with complex marionettes and music.Performance
🇲🇾 Malaysia and 4 moreDikir baratDikir Hulu / Dikir Barat
A group singing art from the Malay Peninsula where verses are traded back and forth in a witty lyrical duel.Performance
🇲🇾 Malaysia and 2 moreNgajatTanda Ngajat
A traditional folk dance of the Iban people in Sarawak and Borneo, mimicking birds and warriors.Performance
🇮🇩 Bali, Indonesia and 1 moreLegonglégong
A refined Balinese dance of intricate finger movements and expressive gestures, kept in Indonesia.Performance
🇵🇭 PhilippinesCariñosa
A Philippine folk dance of colonial origin where a couple uses a fan and handkerchief to enact a playful romance.Performance
🇵🇭 Cebu City, Philippines and 4 moreSinulog Festival
An annual Philippine dance festival and Catholic devotion honouring the Santo NiñoFestival
🇵🇭 Kalibo, PhilippinesAti-Atihan
A week of drumbeats, street dancing, and devotion to the Infant Jesus in AklanFestival
🇵🇭 Baguio, PhilippinesPanagbenga Festival
A month-long flower festival and parade in the mountain city of BaguioFestival
🇮🇩 Yogyakarta, IndonesiaWayangꦮꦪꦁ
A night-long puppet theatre from Java, where a dalang tells epics behind a lit screenPerformance
🇻🇳 Huế, VietnamNhã nhạcNhã nhạc (雅樂)
Vietnam's royal court music, played for palace rites from the Trần dynasty onwardPerformance
🇻🇳 VietnamCa trùCa trù (歌籌)
A Vietnamese art of sung poetry, led by a woman singer with lute and praise drumPerformance
🇹🇭 ThailandWai khruพิธีไหว้ครู
A Thai ceremony of thanks to teachers, held in schools and in the artsSpiritual
🇵🇭 Iloilo City, PhilippinesDinagyang FestivalDinágyang
An annual festival of drumming, street dance and devotion to the Santo Niño in Iloilo.Festival
🇵🇭 Bacolod, PhilippinesMassKara FestivalPista sang MassKara
A street festival of smiling masks, parades and music in Bacolod, PhilippinesFestival
🇮🇩 Indonesia and 5 moreBatikꦧꦛꦶꦏ꧀ (bathik)
A Javanese wax-resist way of patterning cloth, and the textiles made that wayCraft
🇮🇩 Uluwatu, IndonesiaKecakᬓᬾᬘᬓ᭄ (Balinese), Tari Kecak (Indonesian)
A circle of men chanting chak as they dance the Ramayana epic in BaliPerformance
🇲🇾 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
🇸🇬 Singapore and 2 moreChingay Parade妝藝
A lively street procession of floats, giant flags, and performing arts in Southeast AsiaFestival
🇹🇭 Thailand and 4 moreVessantara JatakaVessantara Jātaka
A Buddhist festival celebrating the last life of the Buddha as a generous prince.Festival
🇵🇭 PhilippinesHarana
A Filipino serenade where a suitor sings beneath his beloved's window at nightPerformance
🇹🇭 Thailand and 1 moreMenoraมโนราห์
A traditional Thai dance drama from the south, featuring acrobatics and sacred rituals.Performance
🇸🇬 Singapore, SingaporeSingapore International Festival of Arts
A month of theatre, dance, music and visual art in Singapore each mid-yearPerformance
🇻🇳 VietnamSpace of Gong Culture in the Central Highlands of VietnamKhông gian văn hóa Cồng Chiêng Tây Nguyên
Gong sets of Vietnam's Central Highlands, played for festivals and spiritsPerformance
🇰🇭 Longvek, Cambodia and 2 moreKhmer traditional clothing
How Khmer people dress: the wrapped sampot, the embroidered sbai, the checkered kramaDress
🇵🇭 PhilippinesBinirayan Festival
An annual December cultural festival in Antique celebrating Panay's Malay settlementFestival
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Pangalay: BrokenSphere, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Tinikling: U.S. Air Force/Senior Airman Nestor Cruz, Public domain, source
- Pasyon: Judgefloro, CC0, source
- Dinagyang Festival: Bernardo 'Berniemack' Arellano III, CC BY 3.0, source
- Ati-Atihan: Bernardo "Berniemack" Arellano III, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- MassKara Festival: Ceslou, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ogoh-ogoh: Simondodit, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Pandanggo: John Charlton, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Barong: Michael Gunther, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Chèo: Thomas Schoch, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- National Day Parade: chensiyuan, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Apsara Dance: Remi Jouan, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Nón lá: Ratmanhme282020, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Yoke thé: Uthantofburma ( talk ) 05:15, 30 November 2010 (UTC), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Dikir barat: SMK SERI MAHKOTA, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ngajat: Menuaibansarawak, CC0, source
- Legong: P. (Paul) Spies (Fotograaf/photographer)., CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Cariñosa: Markytour777, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Wayang: Kevin Gessner, CC BY 2.0, source
- Nhã nhạc: Lưu Ly ( thảo luận ), Public domain, source
- Ca trù: Michael Coghlan, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Wai khru: seetefl on Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Singapore International Festival of Arts: Waycool27 at English Wikipedia, Public domain, source
- Binirayan Festival: Ranieljosecastaneda, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Vessantara Jataka: Adam Jones, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Harana: Markytour777, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Menora: AjarnRichard, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Panagbenga Festival: lolay, CC BY 2.0, source
- Sinulog Festival: Herbert Kikoy, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Chingay Parade: HundenvonPenang, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Batik: Fpangestuphotographer, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Khmer traditional clothing: Engsamnang, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kecak: Rollan Budi, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Space of Gong Culture in the Central Highlands of Vietnam: Đỗ Tuấn Hưng, CC BY-SA 3.0, source