Living Traditions

Living Traditions

Each year on the third weekend in May, Salt Lake City celebrates its cultural diversity with the Living Traditions Festival. The Utah Humanities Council started the festival to spotlight traditional folk arts, to offer ethnic minorities a public opportunity to express pride in their heritages, and to educate the public about the richness of the city's many cultures.

In the heart of the city, at Washington Square, 20-odd food vendors, each representing a nonprofit community group, prepare different national specialties. Money raised goes toward funding each group's activities throughout the year. On the four stages set up around the square, musicians and dancers from more than 45 countries perform. Past festivals have showcased performing arts from Brazil, Tahiti, Bosnia, Japan, and Norway. Artisans conduct demonstrations under tents and answer questions about their work on everything from Hopi katsina dolls and Tibetan rugs to Tongan mats and Japanese origami. One tent is set up as a crafts market.

Living Traditions is just one of Salt Lake's many annual ethnic festivals. The second week of September sees a Greek Festival, with food, dancing, and music. The suburb of Murray hosts a Scottish Festival during the second week of June. The St. Patrick's Day Parade, held the Saturday closest to March 17, turns the streets green with colorful floats, bands, and good humor, and early May sees numerous Cinco de Mayo festivals in the area.