harvest festival

References

Images

harvest festival in Papua New Guinea

harvest festival

Written by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

June 25, 2026

Quick Summary

harvest festival in Papua New Guinea — harvest festival in Papua New Guinea Men and boys carrying yams at a harvest festival in the Trobriand Islands, Papua New Guinea.

A harvest festival is a celebration of the end of the harvest season, a time when crops are gathered. These festivals have ancient roots and are observed worldwide, often with secularized or religious significance.123

Key aspects include:
* Timing: Celebrated in late September or at various times depending on the region, climate, and crops.12
* Traditions: Often involve singing, decorating, and symbolic rituals like creating a harvest doll from the last sheaf of corn, which is saved for spring planting.13
* Purpose: To give thanks for a bountiful harvest, mark its arrival, and sometimes to ensure its recurrence.2
* Global Examples: Celebrated in various forms, such as China's Mid-Autumn Festival, Ghana's Yam Festival, and the Jewish festival of Sukkot.2

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

4 Britannica Sources

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.

5 Harvest Festivals Around the World
…region, climate, and crop, but festivals celebrating its arrival are held the world over. Some are first-fruits festivals that recognize the start of the season and the first crops, while other harvest festivals are celebrations to give thanks for the blessing of a bountiful harvest and to mark or ensure…
Read More
…region, climate, and crop, but festivals celebrating its arrival are held the world over. Some are first-fruits festivals that recognize the start of the season and the first crops, while other harvest festivals are celebrations to give thanks for the blessing of a bountiful harvest and to mark or ensure…
Read More

Buddhism
New Year and harvest festivals
New Year festivals demonstrate Buddhism’s ability to co-opt preexisting local traditions. On the occasion of the New Year, images of the Buddha in some countries are taken in procession through the streets. Worshipers visit Buddhist sanctuaries and circumambulate a stupa or a sacred…
Read More
New Year festivals demonstrate Buddhism’s ability to co-opt preexisting local traditions. On the occasion of the New Year, images of the Buddha in some countries are taken in procession through the streets. Worshipers visit Buddhist sanctuaries and circumambulate a stupa or a sacred…
Read More

harvest
…as the beginning of the harvest festival.
Read More
…as the beginning of the harvest festival.
Read More

Lammas
…it was kept as a harvest festival, when loaves of bread made from the new grain were consecrated. Its name was derived from the Anglo-Saxon word meaning “loaf-mass.” Gule is another name associated with August 1, which is also the date of the festival of St. Peter’s chains and the…
Read More
…it was kept as a harvest festival, when loaves of bread made from the new grain were consecrated. Its name was derived from the Anglo-Saxon word meaning “loaf-mass.” Gule is another name associated with August 1, which is also the date of the festival of St. Peter’s chains and the…
Read More

first-fruits ceremony
Closely related to harvest festivals, first-fruits practices operate on the belief that the first crops gathered have sacred significance. Examples of this type of ritual can be found in many societies around the world with varying rationales and meanings depending on local religious and cultural contexts. It is…
Read More
Closely related to harvest festivals, first-fruits practices operate on the belief that the first crops gathered have sacred significance. Examples of this type of ritual can be found in many societies around the world with varying rationales and meanings depending on local religious and cultural contexts. It is…
Read More

Thanksgiving Day
The First Thanksgiving: Myths and Facts
…been modeled on a 1621 harvest feast shared by the English colonists (Pilgrims) of Plymouth (now in Massachusetts) and the Wampanoag people. The celebration in Plymouth is commonly called the first Thanksgiving. Plymouth’s Thanksgiving began with a few colonists going out “fowling,” possibly
Read More
…been modeled on a 1621 harvest feast shared by the English colonists (Pilgrims) of Plymouth (now in Massachusetts) and the Wampanoag people. The celebration in Plymouth is commonly called the first Thanksgiving. Plymouth’s Thanksgiving began with a few colonists going out “fowling,” possibly
Read More