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HeritageThailand showcases Chud Thai craftsmanship in Paris ahead of UNESCO reviewFestivalsItalian Festival at the Mount celebrates heritage, community and a taste of the old country (79 photos)ArtsFamily Folk DanceHeritageWhy is Kolkata’s Durga Puja recognised as a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage?HeritageWhy is Kolkata’s Durga Puja recognised as a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage?WeddingsCalifornia city hall goes jurassic with dino wedding ceremonyCarnival28th Latino Heritage Parade and Festival Set for Today, Recognizing City’s ‘Unsung Heroes’WeddingsInternet sensation Mr Faisu gets married in traditional 'Nikah' ceremony, calls it a "blessing beyond words"Holy daysWhen is Diwali 2026? Key dates, significance, how to celebrateWeddingsArt of Betashar: Issatay Issabayev’s Lifelong Dialogue with Kazakh TraditionHeritageThailand showcases Chud Thai craftsmanship in Paris ahead of UNESCO reviewFestivalsItalian Festival at the Mount celebrates heritage, community and a taste of the old country (79 photos)ArtsFamily Folk DanceHeritageWhy is Kolkata’s Durga Puja recognised as a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage?HeritageWhy is Kolkata’s Durga Puja recognised as a UNESCO intangible cultural heritage?WeddingsCalifornia city hall goes jurassic with dino wedding ceremonyCarnival28th Latino Heritage Parade and Festival Set for Today, Recognizing City’s ‘Unsung Heroes’WeddingsInternet sensation Mr Faisu gets married in traditional 'Nikah' ceremony, calls it a "blessing beyond words"Holy daysWhen is Diwali 2026? Key dates, significance, how to celebrateWeddingsArt of Betashar: Issatay Issabayev’s Lifelong Dialogue with Kazakh Tradition
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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.

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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
🇯🇵 JapanMiyamairi宮参り A first visit to a Shinto shrine, about a month after a baby is bornRite of passage 🇯🇵 Japan and 4 moreBodhi Day成道会 A Buddhist observance marking the enlightenment of Gautama Buddha under the Bodhi TreeSpiritual 🇨🇳 Hong Kong, China and 5 moreLunar New Year New year festivals dated by the moon, kept from East Asia to the Middle EastFestival 🇯🇵 Hiroshima, JapanKagura神楽 A sacred Shinto dance tradition in Japan that invites deities to descend and perform through human dancers.Performance 🇨🇳 Ningbo, China and 2 moreMahjong麻將 A tile game from China, played by two to four people at a tableGame 🇨🇳 China and 5 moreAncestor worship Honouring dead relatives with offerings and prayers, kept in many cultures worldwideSpiritual 🇯🇵 JapanJapanese funeral葬儀 (sōgi) A Buddhist farewell in Japan: a wake, cremation, bone-gathering and a family graveRite of passage 🇯🇵 Takasaki, JapanDaruma doll達磨 (daruma) A round Japanese wishing doll: fill one eye to set a goal, the other to mark it done.Folklore 🇰🇷 South KoreaJwibullori쥐불놀이 A Korean New Year game of whirling fire-cans to clear fields and wish good luckGame 🇰🇷 South KoreaKorean traditional funeral A multi-day ritual blending Confucian rites and shamanic practices to guide the deceased to the afterlife.Rite of passage 🇰🇷 South Korea and 1 morePyebaek폐백 A Korean wedding rite where newlyweds bow to elders and share dates, chestnuts and wineRite of passage 🇨🇳 China and 5 moreMoon rabbit月兔 A hare seen in the Moon's dark patches, pounding rice cakes or the elixir of lifeFolklore 🇯🇵 JapanBowing in Japanお辞儀 The Japanese bow, used to greet, thank, apologise and show respectEtiquette 🇯🇵 Kyoto, JapanNoh能 (Nō) Japanese masked dance-drama, staged since the 14th century in family schoolsPerformance 🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan and 2 moreManeki-neko招き猫 A lucky cat figurine, paw raised, kept by shop doors and in homes across JapanFolklore 🇲🇳 MongoliaMorin khuurморин хуур (Mongolian Cyrillic); ᠮᠣᠷᠢᠨ ᠬᠣᠭᠣᠷ (traditional Mongol script) Mongolia's two-string horsehead fiddle, played with a horsehair bowPerformance 🇯🇵 Osaka, Japan and 1 moreBunraku文楽 Osaka's puppet theatre, with chanters, shamisen players and puppeteers in plain sightPerformance 🇲🇳 Ölgii, MongoliaGolden Eagle FestivalБүргэдийн баяр An annual gathering in western Mongolia celebrating Kazakh eagle hunting and horsemanshipFestival 🇯🇵 Tokyo, JapanShinto wedding神前結婚 A short purification ceremony before the kami, sealed by three cups of sakeRite of passage 🇯🇵 Japan and 1 moreBento弁当 A single-portion packed meal in a lidded box, carried to school, work or on a trainTable custom · Lunch 🇨🇳 Suzhou, China and 3 moreDongzhi冬至 A midwinter festival celebrating the return of light with family feasts and dumplingsSeasonal · Dinner 🇰🇷 South KoreaKorean tea ceremony다례 (茶禮) Tea served in Korea as a rite of courtesy, now mostly grain and herbal brewsTable custom · Tea, coffee and drinking ceremonies 🇨🇳 Beijing, China and 1 morePeking opera京剧 / 京劇 (Jīngjù) China's main opera form: song, dance and acrobatics tell the story on a bare stagePerformance 🇨🇳 China and 2 moreCantonese opera粵劇 One of the major forms of Chinese opera, sung in Cantonese in southern ChinaPerformance 🇨🇳 Meizhou Island, China and 5 moreMazu媽祖 A sea goddess of the Chinese coast, asked for calm water and a safe returnSpiritual 🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan and 3 moreObonお盆 (Obon) A Japanese Buddhist festival honoring the spirits of ancestors through dance, light, and family reunion.Festival 🇰🇷 South Korea and 1 moreKorean New Year설날 A three-day Korean festival celebrating the lunisolar new year with family and feastsSeasonal 🇯🇵 Suwa, JapanOnbashira Festival式年造営御柱大祭 A rite in Nagano where massive fir logs are dragged down mountains and raised at shrinesSpiritual 🇯🇵 Tokushima, JapanAwa Dance Festival阿波踊り A summer street dance festival held in Tokushima during the Buddhist season of ObonFestival 🇯🇵 Japan and 2 moreJoya no Kane除夜の鐘 A Japanese Buddhist New Year's Eve ritual where temple bells are struck to cleanse the year of worldly desires.Spiritual 🇯🇵 Kyoto, JapanGozan no Okuribi五山送り火 Five giant bonfires lit across Kyoto's hills to bid farewell to ancestor spirits.Spiritual 🇯🇵 Chichibu, JapanChichibu Night Festival秩父夜祭 A December shrine gathering in Chichibu featuring historic Japanese festival floats.Festival 🇯🇵 JapanYuzu bath柚子湯 A winter solstice soak in hot water with whole yuzu citrus, kept across JapanSeasonal 🇯🇵 Tokyo, JapanKoinobori鯉のぼり Carp-shaped windsocks flown across Japan for Children's Day in springFestival 🇨🇳 ChinaTraditional Chinese marriage婚姻 (hūnyīn) A wedding rite that joins two families, arranged by a go-between and sealed with giftsRite of passage 🇰🇷 Seoul, South Korea and 1 moreMarriage in Korea Weddings in Korea, from Goryeo matchmaking to Confucian rites and modern chapel vowsRite of passage 🇰🇷 Seoul, South Korea and 2 moreHangul Day한글날 South Korea's public day for Hangul, the Korean alphabet, kept on 9 OctoberFestival 🇨🇳 Nanjing, China and 4 moreSingles' Day光棍节 A day for people without a partner that grew into the world's biggest shopping eventFestival 🇨🇳 Beijing, ChinaNational Day国庆节 (guóqìng jié) China's national day on 1 October, marking the republic's founding in 1949Ceremony 🇰🇷 Seoul, South Korea and 1 moreNational Liberation Day of Korea광복절 (Gwangbokjeol) A public holiday on 15 August marking Korea's liberation from Japanese rule in 1945Ceremony 🇯🇵 Tokyo, JapanCulture Day文化の日 (Bunka no Hi) Japan's 3 November holiday for the arts, learning and the Order of CultureFestival 🇨🇳 ChinaKowtow叩頭 A traditional Chinese prostration of deep respect by kneeling and bowing to the groundEtiquette 🇰🇷 South Korea and 4 moreParents' Day어버이날 (Eobeoinal) Days set aside in several countries to thank mothers and fathersFestival 🇨🇳 Yulin, ChinaYulin Dog Meat Festival狗肉节 A ten-day June festival in Yulin, China, where dog meat is eaten with lycheesFestival · Feasts and festival meals 🇯🇵 JapanMarine Day海の日 A Japanese summer holiday to thank the ocean and mark the country's ties to the seaCeremony 🇨🇳 Suzhou, China and 4 moreDongzhi Festival冬至 A winter solstice festival of family reunions, ancestor rites and sweet rice ballsSeasonal · Dinner 🇰🇵 Pyongyang, North KoreaFatherland Liberation War Day조국해방전쟁 승리 기념일 North Korea's July 27 holiday marking the 1953 armistice that stopped the Korean WarCeremony 🇯🇵 Japan and 1 moreFukubukuro福袋 Surprise discount grab bags sold by Japanese retailers for the New YearSeasonal
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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.