Tribal Festivals

Your diary to a world of culturally arresting community, tribal and religious festivals.

All dates are approximate. Many may change with the moon, seasons, harvests, weekends, etc…

January

10^th January – Fête du Vodoun (Voodoo Festival), Benin

15th January 2019 – Kumbh Mela, Allahabad, India. Vast Hindu pilgrimage, bathing in sacred waters, held every three years. 2019 Kumbh Mela runs until mid March.

Dinagyang, third Sunday in January, colourful religious and cultural street festival, held in Iloilo City, Philippines.

Festival on the Niger, (Jan / Feb.) music and dance, near Segou, Mali

Timkat, Feast of the Epiphany, the most colourful of Ethiopia’s festivals

Pongal, a harvest festival celebrated in late Jan / early Feb by the Tamil Nadu in southern India

Theyyam, ritual worship of an elaborately costumed deity, most spectacular when combined with fire dances. Held January to April across Kerala, India.

Kukeri Festival, hairy costumed Pagan parades and games across Bulgaria in January. Most famous is Surva festival held in Pernik, late January.

Sammakka Saralamma Jatara, one of the largest gatherings of people in the world, honoring two goddesses. Held biennially, (2018, 2020, 2022…). Held for 4 days at the end of January, early February in Medaram, Andhra Pradesh, India.

Wat Phu, traditional dance, processions, recitals and boat races in Laos’ biggest festival. Held at the end of January or start February in and around the Wat Phu Temple, Laos

February

2^nd to 17^th February, Tapati Festival, traditional dance, games and ceremonies, Easter Island

3^rd February, Dia de San Blas, in honour of the patron saint, Paraguay

Mayasvi Festival, red-robed members of the Tsou tribe gather in the jungle. Remote settlement of Dabang, Taiwan.

Sa Sartiglia, medieval horseback festival with masked riders. Sardinian festival best seen in Oristano. Last Sunday before Lent and Shrove Tuesday

Oruro Carnival, “Dance of the Devils” costumes, parties and parades, across Bolivia

Carnaval, flamboyant parades held in Bolivia, Peru, Argentina and Uruguay, but the Rio Carnival is the most famous

Festival de la Candelaria, masks, music, parades, traditional dancing in Bolivia and Peru

Messenger Feast, (not officially annual) in Alaska, held by the  Iñupiaq and Yup’ik peoples

FESTIMA, tribal mask dancing festival in Dedougou, Burkina Faso

Janadriyah Festival, impressive showcase of Saudi heritage. Held at the beginning of February each year, just north of Riyadh

March

1^st March, Phagwah, Hindu festival similar to Holi, in Hindu areas of Guyana

23^rd to 27^th, Paro Tshechu, colourful mask dancing for Bhutan’s Spring festival

Bau Nyale Fishing Festival, held in Feb. or March, Lombok, Indonesia

Holi Festival, India (nationwide)

Semana Santa, week before Easter, Catholic processions across Peru

April

13^th to 15^th April, Songkran Water Festival, Thailand

Dipo Festival,  Krobo tribe ‘coming of age’ celebration, Ghana

Kuomboka, dramatic ceremony, marking the end of the rainy season and the King’s return to his palace. Held in Lealui, Zambia

Bouake Carnival, music, food, costumes and parades, held at St Michael’s Cathedral, Bouake, Cote d’ Ivoire

Fête du Dipri, overnight festival to exorcise villages of evil spells, Gomon, Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire

Sigui or Fête des Masques, five day Dogon mask festival, Dogon region, Mali

May

8^th May, Dia de la Virgen de Lujan, parades and processions in Lujan, Argentina

Quyllur Rit’i, Star Snow Festival, dance processions in the Sinakara Valleys, Peru

Aboakyir Festival, celebrated by Simpa or Winneba peoples, central Ghana

Homowo Festival, “Hunger Festival,” Ga people of Ga State, climaxing in Gamashie, in May and August / September harvest

Joshi Festival, bright costumes, music and dancing celebrate the end of Winter and beginning of Spring in the Hindu Kush, Pakistan

June

6^th – 8^th June, Haa Summer Festival, colourful celebration of Bhutanese culture, sports, and religion. Haa Valley, Bhutan

11^th, Kamehameha Day, floral parade and traditional costumes, Hawaii

21^st June, Aymara New Year, best seen in Tiwanaku, Bolivia

24^th June, Inti Raymi, the Inca Festival of the sun, held in Cusco, Peru

24^th June, Fiesta de San Juan Bautista, Venezuela

29^th June to 14^th July, Heiva i Tahiti, biggest Tahitian festival. Expect stone weight lifting, palm tree climbing, and coconut cracking. Across Tahiti

Festa Junina, feast and fireworks in Brazil

Ulwaluko, initiation rite by the amaXhosa, South Africa, in late June and again in late November. Not a festival per se

Ka’el Obesity Pageant, Bodi people in the Omo Valley, Ethiopia

Laura Aboriginal Dance Festival,  last weekend in June, every two years (2017,2019, 2021…). Largest and most varied display of indigenous culture. Laura, Queensland, Australia

July

2^nd July (and 16^th August), Palio di Siena, wildly colourful bareback horse race around the Piazza del Campo, Sienna, Italy.

11^th to 14^th July, Mask Festival, Kokopo, Papua New Guinea

8^th – 12^th July, Gungu Masks Festival, Gungu, DR Congo

11^th – 13^th July, Naadam, nationwide festival with three sports fiercely contested: traditional wrestling, horse-riding and archery. Mongolia

14^th July, Nachi-no-Hi Matsur, dramatic Shinto fire festival, held at Kumano Nachi Taisha Shrine, Nachikatsuura-chō, Japan

Bull Jumping, Hamar tribe, Omo Valley, Ethiopia (continues ad hoc July to September)

Boryeong Mud Festival, mid July annually, using the skin enhancing local clay. Expect mud wrestling to mud massages. Daecheon Beach, South Korea

Donga Stick Fighting, Surma tribe, Omo Valley, Ethiopia

Gule Wamkulu, ritual dance performed by the Chewa in Malawi, Mozambique and Zambia (post- harvest, in July)

Mwakakogwa Festival, sacrifices, dances and “field fighting” to celebrate local New Year, practised in southern Unguja, Zanazibar

Shandur Polo Festival,  held in early July amongst snow capped peaks and crystal clear lakes, atop the Shandur Pass, Chitral District, Pakistan

August

5^th to 7^th, Crocodile Festival, East Sepik Province, Papua New Guinea

10^th August, Auto de Floripes or São Lourenço de Príncipe, epic street theatre performances, across the island of Príncipe, São Tomé and Príncipe

17^th to 19^th, Hagen Show, tribal festival, Mount Hagen, Papua New Guinea

Second Saturday in Aug., Nehru ‘Snake Boat’ Races, Punnamada Backwaters, Alappuzha District, Kerala, India

Third week August, Urkupina, thousands of dancers and musicians in ​Cochabamba, Bolivia

Enga How, cultural festival, Wabag Town, Papua New Guinea

September

15^th to 17^th, Goroka Show, PNG’s biggest tribal festival, Goroka, Papua New Guinea

14^th to 16^th, Thimphu Tshechu, Bhutan’s biggest festival held in the fortress in the capital. Expect music and mask dances extraordinaire

Mistura Food Festival, in Mistura, Peru

Cure Salée or Gerewol, gathering of Tuareg and Wodaabe people, including colourful courtship rituals. Held in the last two weeks of September for three days. Across Niger but famous at InGall

Epe Ekpe, voodoo festival in Glidji, Togo

‘Funeral Season’ in Tana Toraja, Sulwasei, Indonesia

Kutubu Festival, Lake Kutubu, Papua New Guinea

Sebiba, 10 day Tuareg festival held in Djanet, Algeria, from the first day of the Islamic month of Muharram (changes annually in Western calendar)

Phaung Daw U, 18 day festival, vast aquatic procession venerating five images of Buddha. Held at the end of September into October. Lake Inle, Burma

Umhlanga Reed Dance, at the end of September or beginning of October. Swaziland’s biggest traditional festival, bare breasted young ladies present the Princess with reeds they have cut down. Held in Ludzidzini, Swaziland.

October

19^th to 21^st , Hawaiiki Nui Va‘a, annual six-man canoeing race, starts at the Fare waterfront lagoon on Huahine, Tahiti

18^th to 22nd, Jambay Lhakhang Drup, highlight is the Mewang fire ceremony. Held at the Jambay Lhakhang Monastery, Bhutan

20^th to 25^th, Asmat Cultural Festival, artisan products from the Asmat people, as well as costumed dance and song. Held in Yos Sudarso Field, in the Asmat Regency of Papua.

Baba Ghundi, celebrating the Sufi saint of the same name. Traditional horseback games and music over two days in Chipurson Valley in the Upper Hunza on the Pakistan – Afghanistan border.

Morobe Show, Papua New Guinea

Señor de los Milagros (Lord of the Miracles), large Catholic procession in Lima Peru

Tahiti Carnival, street parties and parades, Papeete, Tahiti

November

El Dia de los Muertos, (Day of the Dead), across South America

Kenu & Kundu Festival, boat festival, Milne Bay, Papua New Guinea

San Antonio de Areco Gaucho Festival, horsemanship extraordinaire in San Antonio de Areco, Argentina

Hogbetsotso Festival, “The Festival of Exodus,” first Saturday of November, Anlo Ewes people of Volta Region, Ghana

Mombasa Carnival, music, parades and floats from all cultures and groups across Kenya

Pushkar Camel Fair, one of India’s largest cultural and agricultural events. Held late November in Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

December

15^th-16^th December, Fire Festival, held at Kanzanji Temple and at Akihasan Hongu Akiha Temple, in Hamamatsu-shi, Japan

1^st to 10^th December, Hornbill Festival, gathering of tribes to showcase their traditional costume, dance and games. Held in Kohima, Nagaland, India.

Cattle Crossing, most important Fulani festival in Diafarabe, Mali

Nguon Festival, ceremonial deposing of king with chaotic procession by thousands, Foumban, Cote d’Ivoire (biannual: 2016, 2018, 2020…)

King Abdulaziz Camel Festival, prize money tops US$57m and attracts 300,000 tribes people. Al Dahan, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. December into January annually.

Monthly San Healing Ceremonies, trance dances performed by the San people of Botswana and Namibia

Akwasidae Festival, held every six weeks on a Sunday, by the Ashanti people, Ghana

Every three years Kumbh Mela, a vast Hindu pilgrimage, involving bathing in sacred waters in one of four sites across India, (Allahabad, Haridwar, Nasik and Ujjain) and hence every twelve years for each location. Next up, 15th January to 4th March in Allahbad.