Take our Indian festivals quiz: 30 questions on Diwali, Holi, Eid, Pongal, Onam, Bihu and more, with answers and short notes on why dates change each year.
Indian festivals follow the seasons, the harvest and several religious calendars, which is why there seems to be one almost every week. This quiz has 30 questions across five rounds, from the big national festivals to regional harvest days and modern cultural events. Answers come straight after each question, with a line of background so you learn something even when you get it wrong.
## Why do Indian festival dates change every year?
Before you start, one thing that catches out many people abroad. Most Hindu, Sikh and Jain festivals follow a lunisolar calendar, where months are based on the Moon but kept roughly in step with the solar year. Islamic festivals follow a purely lunar calendar, so they move about 11 days earlier each year by the Western calendar. Christmas and a few others use the Gregorian calendar and stay fixed.
That is why Diwali can fall in October one year and November the next. The [Hindu calendar](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindu_calendar) and [Islamic calendar](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_calendar) articles explain how each one works. For exact dates in a given year, check India's official list of gazetted holidays or your local temple, gurdwara or mosque.
Give yourself one point per correct answer.
## Round 1: The big national festivals
These are the festivals you will hear about in almost every Indian household abroad. If you have family in India, you have probably had a video call on at least one of these days.
1. Which festival celebrates the return of Rama to Ayodhya and is marked with lamps and fireworks? **Diwali.** It usually falls in October or November.
2. On the night before Holi, people light a bonfire. What is it called? **Holika Dahan.** It marks the story of Prahlad being saved from the demon Holika.
3. Which festival marks the end of Ramadan? **Eid al-Fitr.** Its date depends on the sighting of the new moon.
4. Which festival celebrates the birth of Krishna? **Janmashtami.** In Maharashtra, teams form human pyramids to break a pot of curd, called dahi handi.
5. What does "Navratri" mean? **Nine nights.** The festival honours the goddess Durga in her different forms.
6. On Dussehra, giant effigies of which demon king are burned in many parts of North India? **Ravana.** The day marks Rama's victory over him.
## Round 2: Harvest festivals and the new year
Many Indian festivals began as thanks for a good harvest. Several fall in the same week of January, under different names in different states, which makes this round trickier than it looks.
7. Which Tamil Nadu harvest festival in mid-January shares its name with a sweet rice dish? **Pongal.**
8. Which festival, usually on 14 or 15 January, is famous for kite flying in Gujarat? **Makar Sankranti,** called Uttarayan in Gujarat. It marks the sun's move into Makara (Capricorn).
9. Which Punjabi winter festival is celebrated around a bonfire, usually on 13 January? **Lohri.**
10. Which spring harvest festival in Punjab also marks the founding of the Khalsa by Guru Gobind Singh in 1699? **Vaisakhi (Baisakhi).**
11. Which state celebrates Bihu? **Assam.** Rongali (or Bohag) Bihu in April marks the Assamese new year.
12. Which Kerala harvest festival welcomes the legendary King Mahabali home each year? **Onam.** Families make flower carpets called pookalam and share a large feast called the sadya.
## Round 3: Festivals of faith
13. Which Sikh festival celebrates the birth of the founder of Sikhism? **Guru Nanak Jayanti (Gurpurab).** It falls on the full moon of the month of Kartik.
14. Which Jain festival marks the birth of the 24th Tirthankara? **Mahavir Jayanti.**
15. Which full-moon festival marks the birth of the Buddha? **Buddha Purnima.** Many Buddhists also mark his enlightenment and passing on the same day.
16. Which festival is also called Bakrid? **Eid al-Adha.** It remembers the willingness of Ibrahim (Abraham) to sacrifice his son.
17. In which Indian state is Christmas especially well known for midnight mass and old churches? **Goa.** The Churches and Convents of Goa are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
18. Which festival, celebrated mainly in Bihar, involves prayers to the sun god at a river bank at sunrise and sunset? **Chhath Puja.**
Festivals are one of the friendliest ways into [Indian culture](/blog/online-india-quiz-competition), and they come up often in quizzes about India. One of them is the [Bharat Ko Janiye Quiz](https://bkjquiz.com/?utm_source=dgamaf53&utm_medium=paid_search&utm_id=d53), run by India's Ministry of External Affairs. It is free to join and open to everyone worldwide, so you do not have to be Indian to take part.
## Round 4: Regional festivals worth knowing
Each state has festivals that people elsewhere in India may only know by name. These six are famous enough to draw visitors from around the world.
19. In which city is Durga Puja celebrated on the largest scale, with huge themed pandals? **Kolkata.** UNESCO added Durga Puja in Kolkata to its list of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2021.
20. Which state is famous for Ganesh Chaturthi, when idols of Ganesha are carried through the streets and immersed in water? **Maharashtra.**
21. Garba, the circle dance of Navratri, comes from which state? **Gujarat.** UNESCO listed the Garba of Gujarat as Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2023.
22. Which Kerala temple festival in Thrissur is known for rows of decorated elephants? **Thrissur Pooram.**
23. Which festival in Nagaland, held in early December, showcases the state's tribes? **The Hornbill Festival.**
24. Which festival marks the Tibetan Buddhist new year in Ladakh and Sikkim? **Losar.**
You can read about many of these on the official tourism site, [Incredible India](https://www.incredibleindia.gov.in/), which covers festivals state by state.
## Round 5: Fairs, gatherings and family days
The last round mixes huge gatherings with a few easier questions to finish on.
25. Which pilgrimage, held in rotation at Prayagraj, Haridwar, Ujjain and Nashik, is on UNESCO's Intangible Heritage list? **The Kumbh Mela.** It was inscribed in 2017.
26. In which Rajasthan town is a famous camel fair held each year around the Kartik full moon? **Pushkar.**
27. In which festival do brothers and sisters celebrate their bond with a thread called a rakhi? **Raksha Bandhan.**
28. Which god is worshipped first in most Hindu ceremonies, and has his own festival in late summer? **Ganesha.**
29. Which goddess is worshipped on Diwali night for wealth and good fortune? **Lakshmi.**
30. On which date is Christmas celebrated in India? **25 December,** the same as most of the world.
## How did you score?
| Score | Your festival level |
|---|---|
| 26 to 30 | You could plan a festival calendar for the whole family. |
| 18 to 25 | Strong. The regional round is usually where points slip. |
| 10 to 17 | You know the big ones. Try one regional festival a month. |
| Under 10 | Plenty to discover. Start with the next festival on the calendar. |
The full list of Indian elements on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list, which includes several festivals and performing arts, is on the [UNESCO ICH page for India](https://ich.unesco.org/en/state/india-IN). If you enjoyed this, test yourself more widely with our [India general knowledge quiz](/blog/india-general-knowledge-quiz), or share the easier [India quiz for kids](/blog/india-quiz-for-kids) with the younger ones in your family. Festival questions make up a good part of both.
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