All traditions
2,342 traditions so far, best known first. 12,202 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
🇬🇷 Greece and 5 moreEvil eye
A belief in harm cast by envious glares, met with protective charms and spoken blessingsFolklore
🇮🇳 India and 2 morePehlwani
A traditional discipline of clay-pit wrestling across the Indian subcontinent.Game
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreChristmas dinner
The festive family meal of Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, with roast meats and puddingsTable custom · Dinner
🇺🇿 Tashkent, Uzbekistan and 1 moreDoppaدوپپا (Uyghur); doʻppi / дўппи / دوپا (Uzbek)
An embroidered cap, square or round, that Uyghurs and Uzbeks wear across Central AsiaDress
🇮🇳 IndiaZoroastrian wedding
A multi-day Zoroastrian ceremony uniting two people through prayers, rituals and a shared meal.Rite of passage · Dinner
🇮🇷 Iran and 4 moreZardoziزردوزی (zarduzi)
Heavy gold and silver embroidery on silk or velvet, worked in Iran, India and beyondCraft
🇱🇾 LibyaLibyan tea
A strong boiled tea in small glasses, served in three foam-topped roundsTable custom · Tea, coffee and drinking ceremonies
🇬🇧 United KingdomPlough Sunday
An English church blessing of the land and farm tools at the start of the yearSpiritual
🇯🇵 JapanYuzu bath柚子湯
A winter solstice soak in hot water with whole yuzu citrus, kept across JapanSeasonal
🇺🇿 Uzbekistan and 6 moreKurashкөрәш
Central Asian traditional upright folk wrestling using cloth belts or towelsGame
🇨🇭 Liestal, SwitzerlandChienbäse
A Swiss carnival night parade of blazing pinewood brooms and carts of fireFestival
🇭🇹 Port-au-Prince, HaitiHaitian CarnivalKanaval
Haiti's annual street festival of music, satirical plays and costumed paradesFestival · Tea-time and snacking customs
🇷🇺 Khokhloma, RussiaKhokhlomaхохлома
Russian folk painting of red, black and gold flowers and berries on wooden tablewareCraft
🇮🇳 Lucknow, India and 3 moreSherwani
A long buttoned coat for men, worn at weddings and state occasions in South AsiaDress
🇷🇼 RwandaKwita Izina
Rwanda's yearly ceremony naming newborn mountain gorillas, after a baby-naming customRite of passage
🇧🇴 La Paz, Bolivia and 1 moreAlasitasFeria de la Alasita
A month-long Bolivian fair where people exchange miniatures to invite good fortuneFestival
🇧🇬 Bulgaria and 3 moreBanitsaБаница
A layered Bulgarian cheese pastry baked for morning meals and holiday fortunesTable custom · Breakfast
🇮🇳 India and 2 moreLangarਲੰਗਰ
The free kitchen at a gurdwara, where all sit and eat together as equalsTable custom
🇨🇴 Cali, ColombiaCali FairLa Feria de Cali
A six-day Colombian celebration of salsa music, street parades, and regional cultureFestival
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreBank holiday
Official days of rest and financial closure across the British IslesCeremony
🇮🇳 Haridwar, IndiaKumbh MelaKumbha Mēlā
A major Hindu riverside pilgrimage held across four rotating holy cities in IndiaSpiritual
🇮🇳 Mumbai, IndiaDahi Handi
A Hindu festival sport where teams build human towers to break suspended curd potsFestival
🇱🇮 Vaduz, LiechtensteinLiechtenstein National DayStaatsfeiertag Liechtenstein
Liechtenstein's national holiday celebrated with castle speeches, bonfires and fireworksCeremony
🇹🇷 Istanbul, Turkey and 5 moreSimit
A sesame-encrusted ring bread sold by street vendors across Turkey and the former Ottoman lands.Table custom · Breakfast
🇱🇻 Riga, LatviaZiemassvētki
Latvia's midwinter festival of solstice customs, mumming and tree decorationSeasonal
🇱🇺 Luxembourg and 3 moreBuergbrennen
A bonfire festival marking the end of winter on the first Sunday of Lent in LuxembourgSeasonal
🇯🇲 Montego Bay, JamaicaReggae Sumfest
An annual week-long reggae and dancehall music festival in Montego Bay, JamaicaFestival
🇦🇱 Albania and 2 moreBesaBesë
A pledge of honour that an Albanian gives once and must never breakEtiquette
🇧🇧 BarbadosCrop Over
A Barbadian harvest festival marking the end of the sugar cane season with music and parades.Festival
🇫🇲 Satawal, MicronesiaPwo
An initiation that turns students of Caroline Islands wayfinding into navigatorsRite of passage
🇩🇪 Saalfeld, Germany and 5 moreEaster egg treeOstereierbaum
A German springtime custom of dressing living trees and branches with blown eggsFestival
🇪🇨 Latacunga, EcuadorMama Negra
A twice-yearly festival in Latacunga blending Andean, Spanish and African heritageFestival
🇫🇷 FranceConfirmation
A Christian rite of laying on of hands that completes baptism and strengthens faithRite of passage
🇺🇦 Chernivtsi, Ukraine and 3 moreMalankaМаланка
A Ukrainian folk celebration of masked mummers, feasting and New Year blessingsFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇱🇰 Mihintale, Sri LankaPoson
A Sri Lankan Buddhist festival marking the ancient arrival of Buddhism on the islandSpiritual
🇬🇷 GreeceMagiritsaΜαγειρίτσα
A Greek lamb offal soup eaten after the midnight Easter service to break the fastTable custom · Fasting and breaking the fast
🇦🇷 Mendoza, ArgentinaFiesta Nacional de la Vendimia
Argentina's national grape harvest festival, celebrated each year in MendozaSeasonal
🇱🇧 Beirut, Lebanon and 7 moreEid il-Burbaraعيد البربارة
A winter feast of costumes, sweet boiled wheat, and sprouting seeds across the LevantFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇵🇰 Pakistan and 3 moreChaand Raatचाँद रात, چاند رات
The South Asian night of moon-sighting and celebration before EidFestival
🇮🇹 Siena, ItalyPalio
Traditional Italian competitions where local districts race horses, donkeys, or boats to win prizes and pride.Festival
🇵🇰 Lahore, PakistanMela Chiraghanمیلہ چراغاں
A three-day Lahore festival honouring the sixteenth-century Sufi poet Shah Hussain.Spiritual
🇮🇳 India and 2 morePandal
Temporary decorated pavilions and arches built for festivals and gatheringsFestival
🇮🇪 Galway, IrelandGalway International Oyster Festival
An annual autumn gathering in Galway honouring native oysters with shucking contestsTable custom · Feasts and festival meals
🇸🇬 Singapore and 2 moreChingay Parade妝藝
A lively street procession of floats, giant flags, and performing arts in Southeast AsiaFestival
🇪🇸 Spain and 5 moreMoors and ChristiansMoros y Cristianos
Theatrical parades and mock battles staging historic clashes across Spain and beyondFestival
🇪🇬 Thebes, EgyptBeautiful Festival of the Valleyhb nfr n jnt
An ancient Egyptian festival honouring the dead with river processions across ThebesSpiritual
🇧🇬 Kazanlak, BulgariaRose FestivalФестивал на розата
An annual harvest celebration of damask roses across the Rose Valley of BulgariaFestival
🇰🇷 South Korea and 1 moreKorean New Year설날
A three-day Korean festival celebrating the lunisolar new year with family and feastsSeasonal
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Sherwani: SabaFatima123456789, Public domain, source
- Pehlwani: Prasanna Revan aka. Prasannare at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Doppa: Jasper Lee, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Zardozi: Zarood, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Libyan tea: Abdulgahniessadi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Plough Sunday: John Cowie, CC BY 3.0, source
- Yuzu bath: Nori Norisa, CC BY 2.0, source
- Kurash: IlshatS, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Chienbäse: Christof Berger, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Khokhloma: Dmfff, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kwita Izina: Thesmiler de, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Alasitas: Ener6, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Banitsa: Sheku80, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Langar: Harisingh at en.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kumbh Mela: Yosarian, CC BY 3.0, source
- Cali Fair: Jyon, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Dahi Handi: AKS.9955, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Liechtenstein National Day: Förkle, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Simit: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Buergbrennen: luxpim, CC BY 2.0, source
- Reggae Sumfest: Psycler who is also known as AlfredMoya.com for Jamaica MAX, CC BY 3.0, source
- Easter egg tree: Frank schubert, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Mama Negra: Agencia de Noticias ANDES, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Malanka: Viktoriyasechkar, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Poson: Hafiz Issadeen (YIM Hafiz), Dharga Town, Sri Lanka ( https://www.flick, CC BY 2.0, source
- Magiritsa: Andrew Dalby, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Beautiful Festival of the Valley: Norman de Garis Davies, Nina Davies (2-dimensional 1 to 1 Copy of an 1, Public domain, source
- Evil eye: FocalPoint, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Christmas dinner: Austin McGee, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Haitian Carnival: User:Doron, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Confirmation: Unknown author, CC BY 2.0, source
- Fiesta Nacional de la Vendimia: Javinaselli, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Eid il-Burbara: Durziil89, CC0, source
- Chaand Raat: Phadke09, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Palio: faberh, Public domain, source
- Mela Chiraghan: Muhammad Umair Mirza, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Pandal: SHUBHAM KR SONI, CC0, source
- Chingay Parade: HundenvonPenang, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Galway International Oyster Festival: Thoslee, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Moors and Christians: No machine-readable author provided. Jarke assumed (based on copyright, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Rose Festival: Animsaj, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Korean New Year: Kang Byeong Kee, CC BY 3.0, source