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All traditions

2,281 traditions so far, best known first. 12,321 more are on the list to be written. Filter by region, kind and meal.

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RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
KindSpiritualFestivalRite of passageTable customSeasonalDressPerformanceEtiquetteCraftGameFolkloreHomeCeremony
MealBreakfastLunchDinnerSupperTea-time and snacking customsTea, coffee and drinking ceremoniesSweets given and sharedFeasts and festival mealsFasting and breaking the fast
🇮🇳 India and 5 morePretaप्रेत Offerings and rites for spirits enduring deep hunger across Asian traditions.Spiritual 🇲🇽 Veracruz, Mexico and 3 moreMesoamerican ballgameōllamalīztli An ancient Mesoamerican ball game, struck with the hips on stone courtsGame 🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreTzitzitצִיצִית Knotted ritual fringes worn on a four-cornered garment, a reminder of the commandmentsDress 🇹🇻 TuvaluMusic of Tuvalu Rhythmic storytelling dances and choral singing from the Polynesian atolls of TuvaluPerformance 🇲🇿 Island of Mozambique, MozambiqueTufo A women's dance of northern Mozambique, performed at Islamic feasts to drums and songPerformance 🇲🇦 Morocco and 5 moreAndalusi classical musicطرب أندلسي A classical suite of vocal and instrumental music shared across North AfricaPerformance 🇰🇷 Seoul, South Korea and 1 moreTalchum탈춤 A Korean mask dance drama in which masked actors sing, dance and mock the powerfulPerformance 🇵🇪 Peru and 2 moreAyniAyni (Quechua and Aymara) Giving and receiving as a duty, kept by Andean communitiesEtiquette 🇮🇳 IndiaSatsangसत्सङ्ग Sitting in the company of truth, to hear, sing and meditate in northern IndiaSpiritual 🇧🇭 Bahrain and 3 moreFann at-Tanburaفن الطنبورة A Gulf song and dance of drums and tanbura, born in healing, now stagedPerformance 🇵🇭 Manila, PhilippinesPasyon A Tagalog epic of Christ's passion, chanted without a break during Holy WeekSpiritual 🇺🇸 United States and 1 moreIslamic marriageنِكَاح The sacred contract, agreement and wedding celebration forming an Islamic marriageRite of passage · Feasts and festival meals 🇵🇪 Cusco, Peru and 4 moreIntiinti (Quechua) The Inca sun deity, honoured with temples, offerings and the June festival Inti RaymiSpiritual 🇵🇰 Islamabad, Pakistan and 2 moreQawwaliقَوّالی Devotional Sufi singing from South Asia, led by hereditary parties at shrinesPerformance 🇻🇦 Vatican City and 1 moreConclave Cardinals sealed in the Sistine Chapel, voting until two thirds agree on a new popeSpiritual 🇳🇿 Auckland, New ZealandWharenui A Māori carved communal meeting house at the centre of tribal life in New ZealandHome 🇯🇵 Kishiwada, JapanKishiwada Danjiri Matsuri岸和田だんじり祭 A high-speed festival of wooden shrine floats pulled through Kishiwada, JapanFestival 🇯🇵 Kyoto, JapanTorii鳥居 A traditional Japanese gate marking the entrance to a Shinto shrine and separating the sacred from the mundane.Spiritual 🇦🇺 Sydney, AustraliaSongline A navigational and spiritual path across Australia that links ancestral stories to the physical landscape.Folklore 🇮🇳 Mumbai, India and 1 moreFire templeآتشکده A consecrated sanctuary where Zoroastrians tend sacred fires and gather for worshipSpiritual 🇵🇭 PhilippinesPandanggo A lively Philippine folk dance of quick steps, clapping and balanced lightsPerformance 🇮🇳 Puri, India and 1 morePattachitra A cloth scroll painting tradition from eastern India featuring mythological stories and folk tales.Performance 🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreChristmas carol Festive songs and hymns sung during the Christmas season and door to doorPerformance 🇸🇦 Mecca, Saudi ArabiaIhramإِحْرَام A sacred state and simple dress that Muslims enter for Hajj and UmrahSpiritual 🇮🇱 Jerusalem, Israel and 5 moreHoly FireἋγιον Φῶς A fire ceremony in Jerusalem each year, kept by Orthodox Christians before EasterSpiritual 🇮🇳 India and 1 moreKailash Mansarovar Yatraकैलाश मानसरोवर यात्रा (Hindi); ཀཱའི་ལ་ཤ་མན་ས་རོ་ཝར་ཡ་ཏྲ། (Tibetan) A high-altitude pilgrimage to Mount Kailash and Lake Manasarovar in TibetSpiritual 🇮🇳 India and 5 moreGhazalغَزَل A short rhyming poem of love and parting, recited and sung from Arabia to South AsiaPerformance 🇳🇿 Auckland, New ZealandWhakapapa Māori genealogy, recited to place a person among ancestors, land and tribeHome 🇳🇿 New Zealand and 2 moreMarae A cleared, sacred gathering place at the heart of Māori and Polynesian community lifeSpiritual 🇹🇷 Konya, Turkey and 4 moreMevlevi OrderMevlevilik A Sufi tradition from Konya known for its whirling ceremony and devotion to Rumi's teachings.Spiritual 🇳🇬 Ibadan, Nigeria and 1 moreYoruba naming ceremonyÌkòlọ́pọ̀ Orúkọ Yorùbá A rite of passage where a newborn receives a destiny name through divination and family celebration.Rite of passage · Feasts and festival meals 🇹🇱 Timor-LesteUma Lulik Sacred ancestral clan houses and ritual shrines in East TimorSpiritual 🇭🇹 Haiti and 1 moreRara A Haitian street music of bamboo trumpets and drums, played in the Easter seasonPerformance 🇺🇸 New York, United States and 1 moreFortune-telling Reading cards, palms or tea leaves to tell a client what may lie aheadFolklore 🇲🇬 MadagascarFady A system of cultural taboos in Madagascar that regulate daily life and spiritual practice.Spiritual 🇮🇱 IsraelMishloach manotמשלוח מנות Food parcels exchanged on Purim, so everyone has plenty for the day's festive mealSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals 🇦🇺 AustraliaBark painting Ochre pictures on flattened tree bark, an Aboriginal art form of northern AustraliaCraft 🇲🇲 Bagan, MyanmarNat worshipနတ် Veneration of guardian spirits and nature deities alongside Buddhism in MyanmarSpiritual 🇪🇬 Egypt and 5 moreTraditional tattooing The ancient custom of marking the skin for protection, healing, status and sacred ritesDress 🇨🇬 Republic of the CongoNkisi Spiritual vessels and figures crafted to channel ancestral power, healing and justiceSpiritual 🇮🇳 Gwalior, India and 1 moreDhrupadध्रुवपद The foundational vocal and instrumental classical music tradition of northern IndiaPerformance 🇮🇪 Galway, Ireland and 1 moreBrigid's crossCros Bhríde A cross of woven rushes or straw, made for Saint Brigid's Day on the first of FebruaryCraft 🇵🇬 Maprik, Papua New GuineaHaus Tambaran A sacred house of the Sepik peoples, used for ancestor worship and male initiationSpiritual 🇱🇹 LithuaniaVėlinės A Lithuanian remembrance day honouring deceased souls with cemetery prayers and candlesSpiritual 🇳🇬 Oyo, Nigeria and 1 moreEgungunEgúngún Yoruba ancestral masquerades bringing blessings, counsel and moral renewalSpiritual 🇲🇳 Mongolia and 3 moreOvooовоо (Cyrillic Mongolian); ᠣᠪᠤᠭ᠎ᠠ (Traditional Mongol) A stone cairn on a peak or pass, circled by travellers and honoured in sky worshipSpiritual 🇮🇩 IndonesiaOgoh-ogohᬳᭀᬕᭀᬄ​ᬳᭀᬕᭀᬄ Giant handcrafted statues paraded and burned on the eve of the Balinese Saka New YearFestival 🇯🇵 JapanMiko巫女 A woman who serves at a Shinto shrine, dancing, cleansing and helping with ritesSpiritual
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The weekly EveryParampara

Every week: one tradition from somewhere new, what is being celebrated around the world this week, and one idea explained.