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
🇬🇧 United KingdomJack o' Lent
An English Lenten custom of abusing and burning a straw figureSeasonal
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 3 moreSelkieselkie fowk
The seal shapeshifters of Scottish and northern island folkloreFolklore
🇬🇧 United KingdomBaobhan sithBaobh-shìth
A beautiful fairy of Highland tales who dances with hunters and kills themFolklore
🇬🇧 Ashbourne, United Kingdom and 1 moreRoyal Shrovetide Football
A medieval mob football game played in Ashbourne on Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday.Game
🇷🇺 Russia and 5 moreRussian superstitions
Everyday omens, etiquette rules, and household rituals observed across RussiaFolklore
🇪🇸 Spain and 5 moreCabañuelasLas cabañuelas
A traditional weather forecasting method using the first thirty-one days of January to predict the rest of the year.Folklore
🇪🇸 Spain and 5 moreSack Man
A widespread folklore figure who carries a sack to take away disobedient childrenFolklore
🇬🇧 United KingdomWooing Play
A folk performance of farm labourers in the East Midlands, featuring a sieve horse.Performance
🇬🇧 United KingdomThe Knight's Ghost
A traditional folk ballad of grief, captive soldiers and a midnight spectral visitationPerformance
🇪🇸 SpainThe Water of LifeL'aigua de vida
A Catalan folk tale of a quest for magic water, a fragrant branch and a talking birdPerformance
🇬🇧 United KingdomAssipattle and the Stoor Worm
An Orcadian dragon-slayer tale of a fireside daydreamer who defeats a giant sea monsterFolklore
🇫🇷 France and 5 moreRespite SanctuarySanctuaire à répit
A historical Catholic custom of seeking brief revival to baptise stillborn infantsSpiritual
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreCorpse road
Historical paths used to carry the dead to parish burial grounds across Britain and Ireland.Rite of passage
🇸🇪 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
🇺🇦 Dnipro, UkraineCossack songs of the Dnipropetrovsk RegionКозацькі пісні Дніпропетровщини
Folk songs made by Cossacks, still sung in villages of the Dnipropetrovsk regionPerformance
🇬🇧 United KingdomBean-nighe
A Scottish spirit of the streams who washes shrouds to foretell deathFolklore
🇩🇪 Germany and 5 moreSaint Nicholas
Boots out on 6 December: sweets for good children, a switch for the restFestival · Sweets given and shared
🇬🇧 United KingdomStirrup cup
A farewell drink served to guests as they depart, often while mounting a horse.Etiquette
🇩🇪 Weingarten, Germany and 1 moreBlutritt
An equestrian pilgrimage across southern Germany honoring a relic of the Holy BloodSpiritual
🇬🇧 United KingdomMoragMòrag
A loch monster said to live in Loch Morar, Scotland, reported since 1887Folklore
🇮🇹 Benevento, ItalyWitches of Benevento
A southern Italian tradition of walnut-tree gatherings and protective folk charmsFolklore
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreScottish folk music
Traditional ballads, fiddle tunes and bagpipe melodies from Scotland and its diasporaPerformance
🇬🇧 United KingdomThe Broad
A Cotswold Christmas figure: a bull's head on a pole, carried by a hidden performerFolklore
🇷🇺 RussiaBlack wedding
A traditional Jewish crisis wedding held in a cemetery to ward off diseaseSpiritual
🇬🇷 GreecePeronaiπερόνη (perónē)
A long straight pin that fastened Greek clothing, and a weapon in Greek legendDress
🇮🇸 IcelandChristmas in IcelandJól
A winter festival of mountain folklore, family feasts and thirteen mischievous visitorsFestival · Dinner
🇫🇷 France and 2 moreReynard the FoxRoman de Renart
A medieval European beast fable cycle starring a cunning trickster foxFolklore
🇬🇧 Orkney, United KingdomNuckelaveeknoggelvi
A horse-like sea demon of Orkney folklore, blamed for drought, plague and sick livestock.Folklore
🇬🇧 Skye, United KingdomFairy FlagA' Bhratach Shìth
A tattered silk square kept by Clan MacLeod on Skye, said to hold magical powers for the clan.Folklore
🇬🇧 United KingdomBoobrie
A shapeshifting beast of Scotland's western sea lochs, said to take livestockFolklore
🇬🇧 Linton, United KingdomLinton Worm
A Borders dragon killed with a burning spear, told in Roxburghshire since the 12th centuryFolklore
🇬🇧 Torry, United KingdomUnspoken Water
A Scottish healing custom in which water was fetched in silence and given to the sickFolklore
🇮🇪 Ireland and 5 moreFairy ring
A natural ring of mushrooms formed by fungal growth, surrounded by folklore across Europe and beyond.Folklore
🇮🇪 Ireland and 1 moreFilifilí (Irish)
Ireland's and Scotland's trained poets, storytellers and seersPerformance
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 3 moreSelkieselkie fowk
The seal shapeshifters of Scottish and northern island folkloreFolklore
🇬🇧 United KingdomBaobhan sithBaobh-shìth
A beautiful fairy of Highland tales who dances with hunters and kills themFolklore
🇬🇧 Ashbourne, United Kingdom and 1 moreRoyal Shrovetide Football
A medieval mob football game played in Ashbourne on Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday.Game
🇷🇺 Russia and 5 moreRussian superstitions
Everyday omens, etiquette rules, and household rituals observed across RussiaFolklore
🇪🇸 Spain and 5 moreCabañuelasLas cabañuelas
A traditional weather forecasting method using the first thirty-one days of January to predict the rest of the year.Folklore
🇪🇸 Spain and 5 moreSack Man
A widespread folklore figure who carries a sack to take away disobedient childrenFolklore
🇬🇧 United KingdomWooing Play
A folk performance of farm labourers in the East Midlands, featuring a sieve horse.Performance
🇬🇧 United KingdomThe Knight's Ghost
A traditional folk ballad of grief, captive soldiers and a midnight spectral visitationPerformance
🇪🇸 SpainThe Water of LifeL'aigua de vida
A Catalan folk tale of a quest for magic water, a fragrant branch and a talking birdPerformance
🇬🇧 United KingdomAssipattle and the Stoor Worm
An Orcadian dragon-slayer tale of a fireside daydreamer who defeats a giant sea monsterFolklore
🇫🇷 France and 5 moreRespite SanctuarySanctuaire à répit
A historical Catholic custom of seeking brief revival to baptise stillborn infantsSpiritual
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreCorpse road
Historical paths used to carry the dead to parish burial grounds across Britain and Ireland.Rite of passage
🇸🇪 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
🇺🇦 Dnipro, UkraineCossack songs of the Dnipropetrovsk RegionКозацькі пісні Дніпропетровщини
Folk songs made by Cossacks, still sung in villages of the Dnipropetrovsk regionPerformance
🇬🇧 United KingdomBean-nighe
A Scottish spirit of the streams who washes shrouds to foretell deathFolklore
🇩🇪 Germany and 5 moreSaint Nicholas
Boots out on 6 December: sweets for good children, a switch for the restFestival · Sweets given and shared
🇬🇧 United KingdomStirrup cup
A farewell drink served to guests as they depart, often while mounting a horse.Etiquette
🇩🇪 Weingarten, Germany and 1 moreBlutritt
An equestrian pilgrimage across southern Germany honoring a relic of the Holy BloodSpiritual
🇬🇧 United KingdomMoragMòrag
A loch monster said to live in Loch Morar, Scotland, reported since 1887Folklore
🇮🇹 Benevento, ItalyWitches of Benevento
A southern Italian tradition of walnut-tree gatherings and protective folk charmsFolklore
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreScottish folk music
Traditional ballads, fiddle tunes and bagpipe melodies from Scotland and its diasporaPerformance
🇬🇧 United KingdomThe Broad
A Cotswold Christmas figure: a bull's head on a pole, carried by a hidden performerFolklore
🇷🇺 RussiaBlack wedding
A traditional Jewish crisis wedding held in a cemetery to ward off diseaseSpiritual
🇬🇷 GreecePeronaiπερόνη (perónē)
A long straight pin that fastened Greek clothing, and a weapon in Greek legendDress
🇮🇸 IcelandChristmas in IcelandJól
A winter festival of mountain folklore, family feasts and thirteen mischievous visitorsFestival · Dinner
🇫🇷 France and 2 moreReynard the FoxRoman de Renart
A medieval European beast fable cycle starring a cunning trickster foxFolklore
🇬🇧 Orkney, United KingdomNuckelaveeknoggelvi
A horse-like sea demon of Orkney folklore, blamed for drought, plague and sick livestock.Folklore
🇬🇧 Skye, United KingdomFairy FlagA' Bhratach Shìth
A tattered silk square kept by Clan MacLeod on Skye, said to hold magical powers for the clan.Folklore
🇬🇧 United KingdomBoobrie
A shapeshifting beast of Scotland's western sea lochs, said to take livestockFolklore
🇬🇧 Linton, United KingdomLinton Worm
A Borders dragon killed with a burning spear, told in Roxburghshire since the 12th centuryFolklore
🇬🇧 Torry, United KingdomUnspoken Water
A Scottish healing custom in which water was fetched in silence and given to the sickFolklore
🇮🇪 Ireland and 5 moreFairy ring
A natural ring of mushrooms formed by fungal growth, surrounded by folklore across Europe and beyond.Folklore
🇮🇪 Ireland and 1 moreFilifilí (Irish)
Ireland's and Scotland's trained poets, storytellers and seersPerformance
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- The Water of Life: Internet Archive Book Images, CC0, source
- Russian superstitions: Сергей Чеботарёв, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Royal Shrovetide Football: Adrian Roebuck, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Fili: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Fairy ring: User:Mrs skippy, Public domain, source
- Linton Worm: Pasicles, CC0, source
- Boobrie: Ole Worm - Olaus Wormius, Public domain, source
- Fairy Flag: Otter, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Nuckelavee: Colin Park, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Christmas in Iceland: Bryan Ledgard, CC BY 2.0, source
- Blutritt: Joseph Bayer, Public domain, source
- Witches of Benevento: Guglielmo della Porta, CC0, source
- Scottish folk music: Kim Traynor, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Black wedding: American Colony Photo Department, Public domain, source
- Selkie: Carolyn Emerick, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Sack Man: Ponscor, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Respite Sanctuary: Atelier Roussel à Beauvais 1878, Public domain, source
- Corpse road: Mick Garratt, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Cossack songs of the Dnipropetrovsk Region: Юрій Булка, CC BY 4.0, source
- Saint Nicholas: Chmee2, CC BY 3.0, source