It was barely lunch time on Saturday and already a line was forming at Deering Oaks in front of the tent where Jeanne D’arc Mukankubito was selling fried rice, beef kebabs, samosas, boiled potatoes and fried chicken.

“Last year, we really had a lot of people,” said Jennifer Ishimwe, Mukankubito’s daughter.

She said she expected the same Saturday as she helped her mother serve Rwandan food at the Festival of Nations, an annual celebration of Maine’s ethnic diversity and traditions.

The 21st festival was held Saturday and co-hosted by the city of Portland, the Mugadi Foundation and Women In Need.

More than 30 vendors lined a street in the park, selling food and crafts from different countries including Rwanda, Ethiopia and Azerbaijan, and performances were planned throughout the day, including Hawaiian hula dancing and rap from an Iranian artist.

The festival was started by Shalom Odokara, who lives in Portland and was born in the U.S. but is of Nigerian descent.

“She wanted to celebrate Maine’s diversity,” said Odokara’s son, Michael Odokara. “When you think of Maine, you don’t think of it being very diverse. But Maine has so many diverse cultures and nations (represented) and languages spoken. … She wanted to celebrate that.”

Odokara and other festival organizers said they’ve enjoyed seeing the event grow and be embraced by the community. The festival always takes place on the last Saturday in July and was expected to draw about 2,000 people this year.

“The emphasis is on bringing the community together and enjoying each other’s company, sharing the food,” said festival co-coordinator Sue Searle. “That’s what it’s all about, just having a wonderful time together.”

The park was abuzz with activity Saturday, as temperatures hovered in the low 80s, families flocked to the wading pool to cool off and the Portland Farmers’ Market also took place nearby.

Amy Gaidis and her 3-year-old son, Callan Hill-Gaidis, were at the farmers market and wandered over to the festival to see what it was about. “I’ve meant to come in past years but just never made it,” said Gaidis, 35. “So I’m glad we ended up here.”

She was enjoying a plate of chicken, plantains, and rice and beans. “It’s delicious,” Gaidis said.

At the Rwandan food stand, Ishimwe said her mother, who is from the country originally, has been coming to the festival regularly for the past few years. It’s always a busy but enjoyable day.

“Even though it stresses her, she gets really happy sharing her love of cooking,” Ishimwe said. “She loves feeding people.”

At another tent, Aklilu Tsaedu was selling Ethiopian food including rice with vegetables; chicken stew; spicy potato stew; sambusas, a triangle-shaped pastry filled with lentils or ground turkey; and injera, a flatbread made from teff flour.

Tsaedu said he has been coming to the festival for years and loves it. “We were just talking with customers and saying it’s not fair that it’s only once a year,” he said. “We want to have it more often.”

Amadou Kane, who comes from Massachusetts for the festival each year, was selling baskets, bowls, purses, instruments and wooden statues of animals from West Africa. “This is the world,” Kane said, gesturing to the festival around him. “It brings people together from around the world.”

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