The world is a fantastic place that is full of diversity. Different cultures often have different traditions that seem pretty important to some people but will then seem strange to others. Here, you can take a look at a list of the weirdest traditions from all around the world.
1. Nag Panchami (India)
That’s a tradition in India where people come with each other to celebrate snakes. Some of the most poisonous snakes worldwide are carried in a basket to a temple that is located in rural areas like Maharashtra. Once the basket is there, the snakes are sprinkled with a mix of a red powder, milk, and an amount of honey before they are released into the temple’s courtyard. Fortunately, mortal bites at the Nag Panchami Festival are unheard of.
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2. La Tomatina (Spain)
Spain has been known for having many exciting traditions such as siestas and the Pamplona bull run. One of the messiest traditions comes is La Tomatina. People of Valencia take part in a big tomato throwing fight in Bunol. They throw tomatoes at each other everywhere, just for entertainment, but buying a ticket in advance is necessary to join the fight.
3. Itchy Palms (USA)
While gambling encourages a lot of superstitious traditions everywhere, there’s a tradition that comes from the Afro-American culture in the US. There, it’s believed that if a person begins to have a feeling of itchy palms then they are likely to come into money and fortune. So, if somebody feels their palms itching them then they will begin to gamble in an attempt to take advantage of this upcoming good fortune.
4. Throwing cinnamon at single people (Denmark)
Turning 25 while still single and unmarried is dangerous in Denmark. There’s a tradition where your friends will drown you with cinnamon on your 25 birthday for that cause. As scary as it seems, turning 30 with the same status is no better because the spice now is spicier, you guessed that right, it’s pepper!
5. Bride kidnapping (Romania)
In a particularly bizarre custom followed by Roman Gypsies, kidnapping the girl you love is very much legal there. If that wasn’t weird enough for you, kidnapping also means in Romania that you’ve won the girl and have the right to marry her legally, that is if you were able to keep her as a hostage for 3-5 days.
6. Battle of Oranges (Italy)
During the carnival known as ‘Carnevale di Ivrea’, people of the city of Ivrea remake a historic fight with a specific ruling tyrant. Weirdly enough, the battle isn’t with guns or any other weapons as we know, instead of that people use oranges. More than 500.000 grams of fresh oranges ready to be tossed are bought for this ‘Battaglia Delle Arance’ which means the battle of oranges. This is a festival known for being rich in history and valuing the fight for freedom and liberty. That is the pure core of the fight during the Ivrea festival.
7. Monkey Buffet Festival (Thailand)
Proving that customs don’t need to be as old as our ancestors to be accepted, Thailand’s Monkey Buffet Festival has grown year after year since its introduction in 1989 when a local hotelier came up with this idea to boost up tourism.
The temples of Lopburi, which are located two hours by road north of Bangkok city, are festooned with huge mountains of fruit and vegetables and even cakes, and the local population of macaques is allowed to feast on these mountains. People dress like monkeys to celebrate, while monkey art decorates the streets and walls.
8. ‘El Colacho’ or Baby Jumping (Spain)
Make your way straight to Castrillo de Murcia to watch what can be considered as one of the strangest traditions on the planet, El Colacho. A bizarre tradition that has been followed for almost 400 years, babies are laid next to each other on mattresses in the street, while men who are dressed as the ‘devil’ jump over the babies as their parents and visitors play spectators, long-jumps will never be the same for the audience anymore.
9. The Mari Lwyd (Wales)
Welsh people have always been reputed for being a bit out there and that reputation is for sure powered by this odd Christmas tradition in Wales. The Mari Lwyd is what they call a decorated horse’s skull by Welsh people. And if a solitary decorated horse’s skull wasn’t frightening enough, the skull is placed on a broomstick and covered in a white sheet with bells hanging from the skull. Later, this sinister figure is taken door-to-door to challenge people in a singing competition. It is a tradition that went back to the 19th century. However, no one dares to ask how it actually started.
10. Red Ink Ban (South Korea)
Considered one of the creepiest traditions from South Korea, which indicates not accepting to write a person’s name in red ink. The reason for this is that the red color was used to write the names of people who had passed away.
So, it feels by writing a person’s name in red, people are railing him/her to their destination. Fortunately, this tradition isn’t in place in western countries because otherwise, school kids would definitely have a field day freaking out their classmates and friends by repeatedly scribbling their names in red ink on their school books and notebooks.
In fact, any society in the world has its own traditions that identify its heritage and make a surprisingly different way of living. This diversity appears from people’s acts, practices, behaviors, and beliefs. That’s why a normal tradition for some might be a weird custom for others.
