About us
The Edinburgh Festival is a collective term for many arts and cultural festivals that take place in Edinburgh, Scotland each summer, mostly in August. Though the festivals are put on by various organizations unrelated to each other, and so are officially separate events, they are regarded by many visitors as part of the same event; and together they form the largest annual cultural festival in the world.
The original, and still the largest, component festivals are the Edinburgh International Festival and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe; the latter is in its own right larger than any other similar event in the world.
The Edinburgh International Festival (EIF) was established in 1947 in a post-war effort to "provide a platform for the flowering of the human spirit".[1] That same year, eight theatrical companies "gatecrashed" the official Festival by organizing their own event, outside the official auspices of the EIF; this started the movement which grew into the Edinburgh Festival Fringe (EFF). The EFF is also referred to as the Edinburgh Fringe, the Fringe, or (incorrectly) the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.[2]
The EIF and the Fringe remain independent bodies and run separate programmes each year. In more recent years various other annual cultural festivals have been created in Edinburgh, again by separate organizations, though taking place at around the same time.
Major Festivals of India :» Makar Sankranti | Baisakhi | Diwali festival | Durga Puja | Dussehra | Onam | Holi | Janmashtami | Karwa Chauth | Maha shivaratri | Naag Panchami | Ganesh Chaturthi | Navratri | Pongal | Raksha bandhan | Guru Nanak Jayanti | Lohri | Eid ul Fitr | Muhorram| Ram Navami | Christmas | Good Friday | Gandhi Jayanti | Independence Day | Republic Day | Jamshed Navroz | Buddha Purnima | Hemis Gompa |
Other Festivals in India :
The word festival means feast day, festive celebration. As kids, when there used to be festivals the only thing that came to our minds was holidays and sweets that in turn meant lots of fun. India being a society of may religions there are a lot many festivals. For the Hindus there is diwali, for the Muslims there is id, for the Christians its Christmas and for the Parsis it’s the New Year and apart from all these days there are two other days that are celebrated by all Indians irrespective of cast, creed or sex. Yes, its 26th January and 15th August. i.e. republic day and the Independence Day
Dusshera in India is another festival celebrated by the Hindus. It marks the victory of good over evil. On that day lord ram killed the evil Ravana. On dusshera an effigy of Ravana is burnt at many places.
Ramzan Id is the most important festival in the Muslim calendar. A month long fasting and prayers is followed by Ramzan Id. It’s said that during this month all the prayers and wishes of an individual comes true.
Christmas in India - Christmas marks the birth of Jesus Christ on 25th December every year and is an inseparable part of Christians all over the country and the world. Santa Claus, gifts, cakes, cookies, and the beautifully decorated Christmas tree with a midnight mass depicts he beginning of Christmas.
Easter is another important festival for Christians. It’s usually falls in the month of March or April. 40 days fast is followed by Good Friday and Easter. On this day Jesus Christ rose from the dead and ascended into heaven. Easter eggs and Easter bunnies are a major attraction during Easter.
Parsi New Year is one of the most important days in the Parsi community. It marks the beginning of a New Year filled with joy and prosperity.
15th august is celebrated by all Indians because on this day in the year 1947 India received independence from the British rule in India.
Holi is another festival that is celebrated by all communities. It’s a festival of colours. It marks the beginning of summer season and so water balloons are burst to beat the heat.
Some other festivals that are celebrated happily all over the country are Onam, Baisakhi, Pongal, Mahavir Jayanti, Buddha Jayanti, Guru Purnima, Raksha Bandhan, Krishna Janmashtami, Gandhi Jayanti, Kumbh Mela, Children’s day, Ganesh Chaturthi and many many more festivals.
Festivals bring joy and happiness in our lives. If we celebrate all festivals alike we can spread the message of joy, happiness, brotherhood and humanity among one another and live as one family and community.
Edinburgh International Festival (founded 1947)* — The original and "official" festival consisting of classical and contemporary theatre, opera, music, dance, visual arts, talks and workshops.
Edinburgh Fringe (1947)* — now the largest of all the festivals and indeed the largest arts festival in the world.[3] Includes theatre, comedy, music, musicals, dance and children's shows.
Edinburgh International Film Festival or EIFF (1947) was traditionally held in August but, from 2008 is being held in late June.[4]
Edinburgh Military Tattoo (1950)*
Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival (1978)*
Edinburgh International Book Festival (1983)*
Edinburgh Mela (1995) — celebrating Edinburgh's South Asian communities
Edinburgh International Internet Festival (1999)
Edinburgh People's Festival (2002, but claims heritage from earlier festival of same name 1951-1954)
Edinburgh Interactive Festival (2003)
Edinburgh Art Festival (2004)*
Edinburgh Annuale (2004) — contemporary art
Edinburgh Free Fringe (2006) - A festival of free shows, and part of The Fringe.
Free Edinburgh Fringe Festival (2004) - Another festival of free shows, also part of The Fringe.
Festival of Politics (2005)
Festival of Spirituality and Peace (2005)
iFest (2007) — the Internet Festival and Conference
Edinburgh Comedy Festival (2008)* - The comedy programmes from Assembly, Gilded Balloon, Pleasance and Underbelly—part of the Edinburgh Fringe.
West Port Book Festival (2008) - a free book festival based around secondhand bookshops in the West Port area
Edinburgh Book Fringe
Islam Festival Edinburgh
Edinburgh Swing Festival
Edinburgh Harvest Festival
The following festival also occurs in Edinburgh during August, but is an industry gathering - it does not offer events open to the public:
Edinburgh International Television Festival (1976).