Cultural Events & National Celebrations

Owing to the country’s multicultural heritage, Suriname celebrates a variety of distinct ethnic and religious festivals.

• 1 January – New Year’s Eve
• 3 February – Chinese New Year
• 30 March (varies) – Holi-Phagwa
• 24 April – first Easter Day
• 25 April – second Easter Day
• 1 May – Labour Day
• 5 June – Immigration of the Indians (Hindoestanen)
• 1 July – Keti Koti, Emancipation Day (end of slavery)
• 8 August – Immigration of the Javanese
• 9 August – Day of the indigenous people
• 25 November – Independence Day
• 25 December – Christmas
• 26 December – Second Christmas Day

There are several Hindu and Islamic national holidays like Divali (deepavali), Phagwa and Eid ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-adha. These holidays do not have specific dates on the Gregorian calendar as they are based on the Hindu and Islamic calendars, respectively.

There are several holidays which are unique to Suriname. These include the Indian (Hindoestaanse), Javanese and Chinese arrival days. They celebrate the arrival of the first ships with their respective immigrants.

New Year’s Eve in Suriname is called Oud jaar, or “old year”. It is during this period that the Surinamese population goes to the city’s commercial district to watch “demonstrational fireworks”. The bigger stores invest in these firecrackers and display them out in the streets. Every year the length of them is compared, and high praises are given for the company that has imported the largest ribbon.

These celebrations start at 10 in the morning and finish the next day. The day is usually filled with laughter, dance, music, and drinking. When the night starts, the big street parties are already at full capacity. The most popular fiesta is the one that is held at café ‘t Vat in the main tourist district. The parties there stop between 10 and 11 at night, after which people go home to light their pagaras (red-firecracker-ribbons) at midnight. After 12, the parties continue and the streets fill again until daybreak.

Music

Suriname is a South American country, a former colony of the Netherlands with strong ties to that country. The country is well known for kaseko music, and have an Indo-Caribbean tradition.

The Kaseko probably derived from the expression “casser le corps” (rest body) that was used during slavery to describe a very fast dance. Kaseko is a fusion of many styles and folklore from Europe, Africa and the Americas.

It uses rhythmically complex percussion instruments including skratji (big drum) and trap drums and saxophone, trumpet and trombone occasionally. It may be sung solo or in chorus. The songs are typically structured to say and answer, as are the styles of the natives of the area, as winti and Kawina.

The Kaseko evolved in the thirties during festivities that used large bands, particularly bands of winds, and were called Bigi Pokoe (big drum music). The following: World War 2, jazz, calypso and other important became popular; while rock music from the United States soon left its own influence in the form of electric instruments.

Indo-Surinamese Music

Indian music arrived with immigrants from South Asia. This included folk music played with the dhantal, tabla, sitar, harmonium, dholak and tassa drums. Indo-Surinamese songs were mostly Hindus called the “bhajans” and the filmi. The singing style is unique to the Indian community in Suriname and Guyana.

Sports

The Suriname Olympic Committee is the National gouverning body for sports in Suriname. The SOC was established in 1959 and now has 17 members: athletics, badminton, basketball, boxing, chess, cycling, judo, karate, shooting, soccer, swimming, table tennis, taekwando, tennis, triathlon, volleyball and wrestling.

Other somewhat popular sports in Suriname are baseball and softball, beach soccer and beach volley, boating, body building and power lifting, bridge, cricket, draughts, fishing, golf, horseback riding, snooker and billiards, squash, auto and motor sports and car rallying with the annual Savannah rallye of the Surinaamse Auto Rallye Klub (SARK).

One of the major sports in Suriname is football. Some of the greatest football players to represent the Netherlands, such as Fabian de Freitas, Pierre van Hooijdonk, Frank Rijkaard, Ruud Gullit, Patrick Kluivert, Edgar Davids, Clarence Seedorf, Aron Winter, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, Stanley Menzo, Ryan Babel, Ken Monkou, Edson Braafheid, Boy Waterman, Regi Blinker, Fabian Wilnis and Eljero Elia are of Surinamese descent. Davids in particular has written of his passionate pride in his Surinamese heritage and his love of attending football matches there.

There are a number of local heroes in other sports as well, like Primraj Binda, best known as the athlete who dominated the local 10 km (6.2 mi) for nearly a decade, Steven Vismale and Letitia Vriesde. Another notable track athlete from Suriname was Tommy Asinga.

Swimmer Anthony Nesty is the only Olympic medallist for Suriname. Originally from Trinidad and Tobago, he now lives in Gainesville, Florida and is a coach of the University of Florida.

Multiple K-1 champion and legend, Ernesto Hoost, was born in Suriname. Rayen Simson, another legendary multiple world champion kickboxer, was also born in Suriname. Remy Bonjasky also a multiple K-1 champion is also from Surinamese descent. MMA and Kickboxing champions Melvin Manhoef, Gilbert Yvel were born in Suriname or from Surinamese descent. Retired female kickboxer Ilonka Elmont was also born in Suriname. Ginty Vrede, a former Muay Thai Heavy Weight Champion who died in 2008 aged 22, was born in Suriname.

Cuisine

The Surinamese cuisine is extensive, since the population of Suriname comes from many countries. The Surinamese cuisine is a combination of many international cuisines including Hindoestaans (India), Creole (Africa), Javanese (Indonesia), Chinese, Dutch, Jewish, Portuguese and Amerindian.

Dishes and ingredients in Surinamese cooking include roti, fried rice, noodles, pom, snesi Foroe and moksi meti. Basic food include rice, groundnuts and cassava fruits such Tayer (Creole) and roti (Hindi). Usually there is chicken on the menu in many variations: Chinese and Hindu snesi Foroe masala chicken to pom, a very popular party dish of Creole origin.

Salt and meat bakkeljauw are widely used. Beans, okra and Boulanger are examples of vegetables in the Surinamese kitchen. For a spicy dishe, Madame Jeanette peppers are used.

There is also pumping roti (often served with a filling of chicken masala, potato and vegetables) and often served on festive occasions with many guests. Other famous dishes are moksi-alesi (boiled rice mixed with salted meat, shrimp or fish and any vegetables) and the original Javanese fried rice and noodles.