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
🇮🇷 Tehran, IranTa'ziyehتعزیه
A ritual drama from Iran that retells the Karbala mourning each MuharramSpiritual
🇮🇳 Varanasi, India and 2 morePitri Pakshaपितृ पक्ष (Pitṛ pakṣa)
A sixteen-day Hindu period for honoring ancestors through food offerings and rites.Spiritual
🇬🇧 Cardiff, United Kingdom and 1 moreSaint David's DayDydd Gŵyl Dewi Sant
The national feast day of Wales, marked with parades, poetry contests and daffodilsFestival
🇮🇳 Gaya, India and 1 moreShraddhaश्राद्ध
Rituals of faith for the ancestors, kept yearly and through Pitru PakshaSpiritual
🇮🇩 Bali, IndonesiaNyepiᬜᬾᬧᬶ
A Balinese Hindu day of silence, fasting and stillness marking the Saka new yearSpiritual · Fasting and breaking the fast
🇮🇳 IndiaHanuman Jayantiहनुमानजयंती
A Hindu festival marking the birth of Hanuman with prayers, readings and offeringsSpiritual
🇪🇬 Luxor, EgyptOpet Festivalḥb nfr n jpt
An ancient Egyptian festival in Thebes celebrating divine kingship and the Nile floodSpiritual
🇮🇱 IsraelYom HaZikaronיוֹם הַזִּכָּרוֹן
Israel's national day of mourning for fallen soldiers and victims of terrorism.Ceremony
🇯🇵 Tokyo, JapanHatsumōde初詣
The first shrine or temple visit of the Japanese New Year to pray for good fortuneSpiritual
🇮🇷 Iran and 3 morePahlevani and zurkhaneh ritualsآیین پهلوانی و زورخانهای
A traditional Iranian martial art blending calisthenics, wrestling, music and ethicsGame
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreTwelfth Night
The closing evening of the Christmas season, kept with cake, carols and wassailSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇳🇬 Nigeria and 2 moreGeledeGẹlẹdẹ
A Yoruba masked dance festival honoring the spiritual power of mothers and social harmony.Festival
🇧🇾 Belarus and 4 moreDziadyДзяды (Belarusian); Діди (Ukrainian); Dziady (Polish)
A Slavic tradition of feeding and welcoming the spirits of ancestors to ensure family fertility and peace.Spiritual
🇵🇱 Kraków, PolandKraków szopkaszopka krakowska
Elaborate Christmas cribs modelled on historic Polish architecture in KrakówCraft
🇮🇳 Haridwar, India and 3 moreAntyestiअन्त्येष्टि
The traditional Hindu funeral ceremony and final rite of passageRite of passage
🇲🇬 MadagascarFamadihana
A Malagasy reburial custom where families gather to rewrap and honour their ancestorsRite of passage
🇺🇸 United States and 4 moreHoʻoponopono
A Hawaiian family ritual of prayer, confession and forgiveness that sets wrongs rightSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇳 Puri, IndiaAkshaya Tritiyaअक्षय तृतीया (Akṣaya Tṛtīyā)
A spring festival of lasting prosperity observed by Hindus and Jains in India.Festival · Feasts and festival meals
🇯🇵 JapanHadaka Matsuri裸祭り
Japanese festivals where participants clad in loincloths seek luck and purificationSpiritual
🇮🇳 Varanasi, India and 3 moreKartika Purnimaकार्त्तिकपूर्णिमा (Kārttikapūrṇimā)
A full moon festival of lights and holy baths celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs, and Jains across South Asia.Festival
🇭🇷 Dubrovnik, Croatia and 1 moreFestivity of Saint BlaiseFesta Svetog Vlaha
An annual patron saint festival in Dubrovnik with processions, relics and dovesFestival
🇪🇸 Spain and 5 moreMidnight MassMissa in nocte
The first service of Christmas, kept late on Christmas Eve in many Western churchesSpiritual
🇹🇭 Thailand and 5 moreMāgha Pūjāមាឃបូជា
A Buddhist holy day honoring monastic unity, moral guidance and spiritual fellowshipSpiritual · Fasting and breaking the fast
🇦🇲 Armenia and 2 moreVardavarՎարդավառ
An Armenian midsummer festival where people playfully douse each other with waterFestival
🇮🇳 Kolkata, India and 1 moreKali Pujaকালীপূজা
A Hindu festival of midnight worship and illuminated shrines honoring the goddess KaliSpiritual
🇳🇿 New ZealandMatariki
The Māori New Year marked by the midwinter rising of the Pleiades clusterSeasonal
🇯🇵 Kyoto, JapanJidai Matsuri時代祭
An autumn costume procession celebrating Kyoto's imperial heritage and historyFestival
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreDhanterasधनतेरस (Hindi), धनत्रयोदशी (Sanskrit)
The first day of Diwali, a festival of lamps, health and wealth kept across India and Nepal.Festival
🇮🇳 Goa, India and 2 moreBhai Doojभाई दूज
A Hindu festival of sibling bonds marked by forehead markings, feasts and blessingsFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇲🇦 Morocco and 4 moreMimounaמִימוּנָה
A Maghrebi Jewish celebration marking the end of Passover with sweets and open doorsFestival · Dinner
🇲🇲 Yangon, MyanmarThingyanသင်္ကြန်
A four-day water festival marking the Myanmar New Year, celebrated in April with merit-making and playful splashing.Festival
🇪🇹 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and 1 moreMeskelመስቀል (Mesk'el)
A celebration in Ethiopia and Eritrea marking the discovery of the True Cross with a large bonfire.Spiritual
🇰🇷 Seoul, South KoreaYeondeunghoe연등회
A Korean lantern festival celebrating the Buddha's birthday with glowing lotus lightsSpiritual
🇹🇭 Thailand and 5 moreKathina
A Buddhist season of offering new robes and gifts to monks after the rains retreatSpiritual
🇩🇪 Cologne, Germany and 3 moreRosenmontag
The peak of German carnival, celebrated with satirical street parades and sweetsFestival
🇬🇷 GreeceAnthesteriaἈνθεστήρια
An ancient Greek three-day spring festival of Dionysus, new wine, and the deadFestival
🇻🇳 VietnamHùng Kings' Temple FestivalLễ hội đền Hùng
A Vietnamese national festival honoring the legendary founding kings with temple worship and processions.Festival
🇮🇳 IndiaVishuവിഷു
The Malayali new year, kept on 14 or 15 April with an auspicious first sightingSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇮🇳 Goa, IndiaGudi Padwaगुढी पाडवा
A spring festival marking the new year for Marathi and Konkani Hindus in Maharashtra and Goa.Festival
🇳🇵 Kathmandu, Nepal and 4 moreDashainबडादशैँ
A fifteen-day festival of family gatherings, blessings, and feasts across NepalFestival
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreHolika Dahanहोलिकादहन
A Hindu ritual bonfire lit on the eve of Holi to welcome the spring.Spiritual
🇮🇳 IndiaTulasi Vivahaतुलसी विवाह (Tulasī Vivāha)
A ritual wedding of the tulasi plant to Vishnu, kept in homes and temples across IndiaSpiritual
🇮🇳 Chandigarh, India and 1 moreTeejतीज (Tīja)
A monsoon festival where women fast and sing to celebrate the union of Shiva and Parvati.Festival
🇮🇳 IndiaMahavir Janma Kalyanak
A Jain festival of temple worship, street processions and acts of charitySpiritual
🇳🇵 Nepal and 2 moreTiharतिहार
A five-day Nepalese festival honoring animals, deities, and the bond between siblingsFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreClean MondayΚαθαρά Δευτέρα
The Monday that opens Great Lent, kept with fasting, forgiveness and kite-flyingSpiritual · Fasting and breaking the fast
🇰🇭 Cambodia and 4 moreRoyal Ploughing Ceremonyព្រះរាជពិធីបុណ្យច្រត់ព្រះនង្គ័ល
A royal agricultural rite opening the rice season across mainland Southeast AsiaCeremony
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreSharad Purnima
A Hindu autumn full moon festival of night vigils, moonlit sweets and sacred dancesSpiritual · Feasts and festival meals
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Hatsumōde: KKPCW, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Nyepi: Matt Croxson, Public domain, source
- Yom HaZikaron: אבישי טייכר, CC BY 2.5, source
- Famadihana: Saveoursmile (Hery Zo Rakotondramanana), CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Antyesti: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Matariki: Robert Gendler, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kraków szopka: user:cancre, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Kali Puja: Jonoikobangali, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Vardavar: Камалян001, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kathina: Thai Government, CC BY 2.0, source
- Rosenmontag: Aymx, Public domain, source
- Māgha Pūjā: myself, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Dziady: Stanisław Bagieński, Public domain, source
- Yeondeunghoe: Korea.net / Korean Culture and Information Service (Jeon Han), CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Meskel: DanielGirmaTsige, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Saint David's Day: National Assembly for Wales, CC BY 2.0, source
- Pahlevani and zurkhaneh rituals: Hossein Khosravi, CC BY 4.0, source
- Akshaya Tritiya: Fgndgndgnr, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Jidai Matsuri: PlusMinus, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Gudi Padwa: Abhijit Tembhekar, CC BY 2.0, source
- Ta'ziyeh: Payam Moein, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Twelfth Night: Hablot Knight Browne: scanned by Steven J Plunkett, Public domain, source
- Hoʻoponopono: Makana Chai, Public domain, source
- Gelede: Gogeafrica, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Mimouna: U.S. Embassy Tel Aviv, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Bhai Dooj: SandeshLamsalNepal, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Festivity of Saint Blaise: August Dominus, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Opet Festival: Marc Ryckaert, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Teej: Ganesh Paudel at ne.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Dhanteras: The original uploader was F16 at Hebrew Wikipedia ., CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Mahavir Janma Kalyanak: Francis Harry Roy S, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Hadaka Matsuri: CES, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Hanuman Jayanti: Haha sugarr, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Anthesteria: Unknown artist, Public domain, source
- Hùng Kings' Temple Festival: Xuannguyen1133, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Tihar: Sreekumar K. S., CC BY 2.0, source
- Dashain: Unknown author, CC0, source
- Thingyan: Pagan era painter(s), Public domain, source
- Clean Monday: Перов, Public domain, source
- Pitri Paksha: Firoz Shakir, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Sharad Purnima: ShotgunMavericks, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Tulasi Vivaha: Unknown author, CC BY 3.0, source
- Kartika Purnima: Pictowrit, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Holika Dahan: Banswalhemant, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Shraddha: Billjones94, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Royal Ploughing Ceremony: Xiengyod, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Vishu: Vishnu Kunnathully, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Midnight Mass: Atleett, CC0, source