Summer Solstice Festivals Around The World – Midsummer Celebration Is An Ancient Tradition Still Alive
Ellen Lloyd - AncientPages.com - On June 21, many people worldwide celebrate the summer solstice. The festivals are often very colorful and magical. It’s an ancient tradition that is still alive.
Midsummer festival in Warsaw, Poland. Credit: Adobe Stock - tan4ikk
Foods, drinks, clothes, and dances vary depending on the culture, but all have a great appreciation for the summer solstice that marks the longest day of the year. This happens when the Earth’s poles are at their maximum tilt towards the Sun.
Midsummer In Sweden
In countries like Sweden, for example, the Midsummer (Midsommar in Swedish) celebration is one of the year's greatest events. It’s almost as important as Christmas. The traditional Midsummer celebration takes place in the countryside. It should be added though, that one of the best summer solstice festivals occurs at the Skansen open-air museum in Stockholm. On Midsummer Eve people often dressed in traditional costumes dance and sing around a midsummer pole.
Traditional Midsummer celebration in Sweden. Credit: Public Domain
“This is a fertility rite, and the pole is decorated with greenery and flowers. Traditional foods such as pickled herring and potatoes with soured cream and chives are consumed, washed down with Schnapps and spiced vodka.” 1
Ukon Juhla – Midsummer Festival In Finland
In Finland, people still observe the Ukon Juhla festival. It was originally held in honor of Ukko, one the most significant gods of Finnish mythology. God Ukko was the ruler of the sky, weather, harvest, and thunder. However, when Finland became a Christian country, the Pagan festival was re-branded under Christianity as “Juhannus”, held in honor of John the Baptist.
It’s no wonder the Ukon Juhla festival is greatly celebrated in Finland, where people live half the year in darkness. During the Ukon Juhla festival, it’s a tradition to lit large bonfires by lakes and the sea.
Summer Solstice Celebration In UK
In the United Kingdom, it’s custom for Druids to gather around Stonehenge to celebrate the summer solstice. Usually, thousands of people come to celebrate the first day of the summer. Glastonbury Tor in Somerset and the Avebury stone circle in Wiltshire also attract crowds.
Summer Solstice Sunrise over Stonehenge. Credit: Andrew Dunn - CC BY-SA 2.0
The atmosphere is truly magical and celebrating the summer solstice in the United Kingdom is an unforgettable experience.
Also called Litha by Pagans, the Summer Solstice Sabbat honors the only day the rising Sun reaches the middle of the stones. When this happens, the Sun shines on the formation’s central altar, and it’s a great moment, especially to those who are more spiritual.
Summer Solstice Festival In Spain
Spain is a deeply religious country where most of the population is Catholic, but people still appreciate some ancient traditions going back to Pagan times despite the Christian elements. For example, the summer Solstice is celebrated in Spain on June 23. During the feast-day of St John, known as San Juan in Spain, it’s custom to lit huge bonfires, with dancing, drinking, and eating.
The summer solstice traditions in Spain vary between different regions. For example, “in the Pyrenean town of Isil near Lleida, residents mark the summer solstice by zigzagging from mountain top to town square carrying burning branches. After a huge bonfire, townsfolk dance until dawn.” 2
The International Day Of Yoga In The USA
It may sound a bit surprising, but the International Day of Yoga on June 21 is also the summer solstice in the United States.
The UN inaugurated the festival in 2015, and the festival is popular. Thousands of people practicing yoga travel to New York and other cities yearly on this day. There they gather at Times Square to mark the occasion by participating in a free class held in the city’s iconic heart.
Kupala Night – Slavic Celebration Of Summer Solstice
People in Poland (Noc Kupały in Polish), Russia, and Ukraine celebrate a festival known as Kupala Night. This is a summer solstice celebration that involves joyful outdoor celebrations with bonfires, dancing, and singing. It’s custom that young women make beautiful crowns from herbs and wildflowers.
The jump over fire ritual for Lada, Goddess of beauty, love, harmony, and order, is still practiced.
On Kupala Night crowns are placed on water. Divination on the Wreaths - Credit: Simon Kozhin, CC BY-SA 3.0
In Russia and Ukraine, this holiday combines "Ivan" (John, in this case, John the Baptist). In Poland, the holiday “was incorporated into the Christian calendar as St. John’s Eve. As a result, the conventional Polish celebrations of midsummer are an interesting mix of pagan and Christian influences.” 3
Summer Solstice In Mongolia
Under Communist rule, shamanism was banned in Mongolia for 70 years. However, in 1992, the country’s constitution protected ancient traditions.
The distance between Mongolia and European countries is vast, but the traditions are similar. For example, celebrating the summer solstice in Mongolia involves several fire rituals.
There are many other countries where the summer solstice is celebrated yearly. Each culture has its unique ancient tradition.
Updated on June 21, 2022
Written by Ellen Lloyd – AncientPages.com
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