People are marking the start of the winter and summer solstices across the globe. North of the equator, celebrations welcome summer, while those in the south observe the beginning of winter.
In Romania, dancers wearing crowns of wheat gathered for the Sanziene, or “Fairies," a pre-Christian, pagan celebration in honor of the tiny, imaginary winged beings who come to earth as a symbol of fertility. Meanwhile, Lithuanians danced in the small town of Kernave and Russians lit bonfires.
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Indigenous people dance during the traditional Inti Raymi, or Festival of the Sun, coinciding with the winter solstice in Cotacachi, Ecuador, Tuesday, June 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)
People wearing traditional Russian village-style clothes celebrate the summer solstice near a bonfire in the village of Okunevo, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) northeast of the Siberian city of Omsk, Russia, in Okunevo, Russia, Sunday, June 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Sofiychuk)
People wearing traditional Russian village-style clothes celebrate the summer solstice near a bonfire in the village of Okunevo, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) northeast of the Siberian city of Omsk, Russia, in Okunevo, Russia, Sunday, June 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Sofiychuk)
People wearing traditional Russian village-style clothes celebrate the summer solstice near a bonfire in the village of Okunevo, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) northeast of the Siberian city of Omsk, in Okunevo, Russia, Sunday, June 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Sofiychuk)
Aymara Indigenous people hold up their hands to receive the first rays of sunlight in celebration of the Andean New Year 5533 marking the Southern Hemisphere's winter solstice, in El Alto, Bolivia, Saturday, June 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)
Indigenous people gather to celebrate the Andean New Year 5533 marking the Southern Hemisphere's winter solstice, in El Alto, Bolivia, Saturday, June 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)
People wear traditional Lithuanian village-styled clothes as they celebrate Saint John's Day and the summer solstice in the small town of Kernave, some 35km (22 miles) northwest of the capital, Vilnius, Lithuania, Monday, June 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
A girl wearing a crown made of flowers takes part in the Saint John's Day and Summer Solstice celebration in the small town of Kernave, some 35km (22 miles) northwest of the capital, Vilnius, Lithuania, Monday, June 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
People wearing traditional Lithuanian village-style clothes dance as they celebrate Saint John's Day and the summer solstice in the small town of Kernave, some 35km (22 miles) northwest of the capital, Vilnius, Lithuania, Monday, June 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
A couple kiss as they celebrate the night of San Juan on the beach, watching the sunrise that coincides with the summer solstice, marking the arrival of the summer season in Barcelona, Spain, Tuesday, June 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
Catherine Cisneros performs a dance across the lighted squares of Christopher Janey's "Passing Light" solar sculpture that aligns each Summer Solstice at San Antonio International Airport, Friday, June 20, 2025, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Alisa, 9 years-old, looks inside a village home, during an event inspired by pre-Christian traditions, in which fairies, called in Romanian "Sanziene," come to earth around the summer solstice bringing fertility to land and beings, at the Dimitrie Gusti Village Museum in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, June 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
Women, wearing crowns made of flowers, dance during an event inspired by pre-Christian traditions, in which fairies, called in Romanian "Sanziene," come to earth around the summer solstice bringing fertility to land and beings, at the Dimitrie Gusti Village Museum in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, June 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
Girls, wearing traditional outfits, dance during an event inspired by pre-Christian traditions, in which fairies, called in Romanian "Sanziene," come to earth around the summer solstice bringing fertility to land and beings, at the Dimitrie Gusti Village Museum in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, June 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
Girls wearing crowns made of flowers dance during an event inspired by pre-Christian traditions, in which fairies, called in Romanian "Sanziene," come to earth around the summer solstice bringing fertility to land and beings, at the Dimitrie Gusti Village Museum in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, June 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
In the U.S., a performer danced across the colors of Christopher Janey’s “Passing Light” solar sculpture that aligns each Summer Solstice at the San Antonio airport. In Spain, people watched the sun rise on a Barcelona beach, coined “The Night of San Juan.”
South of the equator in Bolivia, Indigenous people gathered around fires and held up their hands to receive the first rays of sunlight in celebration of the Andean New Year of 5533, marking the Southern Hemisphere’s winter solstice.
This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.
Indigenous people dance during the traditional Inti Raymi, or Festival of the Sun, coinciding with the winter solstice in Cotacachi, Ecuador, Tuesday, June 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa)
People wearing traditional Russian village-style clothes celebrate the summer solstice near a bonfire in the village of Okunevo, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) northeast of the Siberian city of Omsk, Russia, in Okunevo, Russia, Sunday, June 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Sofiychuk)
People wearing traditional Russian village-style clothes celebrate the summer solstice near a bonfire in the village of Okunevo, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) northeast of the Siberian city of Omsk, Russia, in Okunevo, Russia, Sunday, June 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Sofiychuk)
People wearing traditional Russian village-style clothes celebrate the summer solstice near a bonfire in the village of Okunevo, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) northeast of the Siberian city of Omsk, in Okunevo, Russia, Sunday, June 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Sofiychuk)
Aymara Indigenous people hold up their hands to receive the first rays of sunlight in celebration of the Andean New Year 5533 marking the Southern Hemisphere's winter solstice, in El Alto, Bolivia, Saturday, June 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)
Indigenous people gather to celebrate the Andean New Year 5533 marking the Southern Hemisphere's winter solstice, in El Alto, Bolivia, Saturday, June 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)
People wear traditional Lithuanian village-styled clothes as they celebrate Saint John's Day and the summer solstice in the small town of Kernave, some 35km (22 miles) northwest of the capital, Vilnius, Lithuania, Monday, June 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
A girl wearing a crown made of flowers takes part in the Saint John's Day and Summer Solstice celebration in the small town of Kernave, some 35km (22 miles) northwest of the capital, Vilnius, Lithuania, Monday, June 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
People wearing traditional Lithuanian village-style clothes dance as they celebrate Saint John's Day and the summer solstice in the small town of Kernave, some 35km (22 miles) northwest of the capital, Vilnius, Lithuania, Monday, June 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Mindaugas Kulbis)
A couple kiss as they celebrate the night of San Juan on the beach, watching the sunrise that coincides with the summer solstice, marking the arrival of the summer season in Barcelona, Spain, Tuesday, June 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
Catherine Cisneros performs a dance across the lighted squares of Christopher Janey's "Passing Light" solar sculpture that aligns each Summer Solstice at San Antonio International Airport, Friday, June 20, 2025, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Alisa, 9 years-old, looks inside a village home, during an event inspired by pre-Christian traditions, in which fairies, called in Romanian "Sanziene," come to earth around the summer solstice bringing fertility to land and beings, at the Dimitrie Gusti Village Museum in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, June 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
Women, wearing crowns made of flowers, dance during an event inspired by pre-Christian traditions, in which fairies, called in Romanian "Sanziene," come to earth around the summer solstice bringing fertility to land and beings, at the Dimitrie Gusti Village Museum in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, June 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
Girls, wearing traditional outfits, dance during an event inspired by pre-Christian traditions, in which fairies, called in Romanian "Sanziene," come to earth around the summer solstice bringing fertility to land and beings, at the Dimitrie Gusti Village Museum in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, June 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
Girls wearing crowns made of flowers dance during an event inspired by pre-Christian traditions, in which fairies, called in Romanian "Sanziene," come to earth around the summer solstice bringing fertility to land and beings, at the Dimitrie Gusti Village Museum in Bucharest, Romania, Tuesday, June 24, 2025. (AP Photo/Andreea Alexandru)
